FORMULA 1 - 2015

[MIKA27]

Williams confident of stronger pace at Sepang

Williams is confident it will be stronger in the Malaysian Grand Prix, as the team reckons the Sepang circuit will suit its car better.

The Grove team headed into the season-opening race in Australia as the favourite to challenge Mercedes, but rival Ferrari proved faster, with Sebastian Vettel finishing third behind Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

But Williams' head of vehicle performance Rob Smedley is optimistic the Mercedes-powered FW37 will be faster this weekend.

"We are heading to Malaysia after a good start to the season, very much in a position to be finishing with both cars scoring good points," said Smedley in a team preview.

"We have been working hard on all areas of performance and to close up any margins we had in Australia.

The ambient conditions always play quite a big part in the weekend and the drivers have to be ready for those challenges. The circuit itself starts off with quite a lot of front graining and finishes being rear limited during the race.

"As it is a purpose built circuit we should be able to see more of the strengths of the FW37 and it should suit us a bit better."

Bottas ready

Finn Valtteri Bottas, who was forced to miss the first race of 2015 because of a back injury, says he has taken all the necessary measures to return to action this weekend.

"I trained a lot over the winter to prepare for these physically difficult conditions," said Bottas.

"After such a frustrating Sunday in Australia, I have taken the necessary measures to make sure I arrive in Malaysia fit to race and ready to bring the results home."

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Adderly Fong added to Lotus F1 development roster

Adderly Fong has been named as the latest addition to Lotus F1's Development Driver roster for 2015, joining Carmen Jorda in the role.

Having competed in single-seaters and sportscars in recent years – including F3, GP3 and the Le Mans 24 Hours -, Hong Kong racer Fong will join the team to contribute to its simulator work to 'enhance and improve the E23 Hybrid'.

Joining Jorda in the role after she was announced in February, Fong will combine his duties at Lotus with a full-time racing campaign in the GP3 Series and GT Asia competition.

“This is a great opportunity to further my racing career; I'll be able to learn how an F1 team operates during race weekends as an integral part of the team and these invaluable experiences are going to lay the foundations of my future development as an F1 driver,” said Fong, who will compete with Koiranen GP in GP3 this year.

“I am happy but I am not going to get carried away, for this is only the first of many steps. I aim to become the first Chinese driver to compete in a Formula 1 Grand Prix which will assist to promote the sport in China and also in Hong Kong. There is great potential for me with Lotus F1 Team so I can't wait to get underway in my new role.”

Lotus F1 CEO Matthew Carter is confident Fong – who participated in an FP1 session with Sauber at the 2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – will be an asset to the team.

“It's great to have Adderly join the team. We have an aggressive development programme with the E23 so he will be able to both learn from our engineers and race drivers as well as contribute to our car through the course of the season.

“We have a very strong driver line-up which Adderly will join so he has a great opportunity to learn ahead of him. We are committed to moving back up the competitive order and Adderly's work behind the scenes will be invaluable in assisting us to achieve this.”

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MALAYSIAN GP PREVIEW: ALONSO RETURN TAKES FOCUS OFF MERCEDES

Formula 1 rolls into Malaysia this week for the second round of the championship at the Sepang International Circuit, where talk surrounding the utter dominance of Mercedes will for once take a back seat to the belated arrival of Fernando Alonso.

The season-opening Australian Grand Prix bordered on the farcical as defending world champion Lewis Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two ahead of Nico Rosberg in a race where only 13 of a possible 20 cars were racing by the end of the first lap.

Mechanical failure, under-prepared cars and injury accounted for most of the withdrawals but double world champion Alonso was unable to even make the trip to Melbourne following a pre-season crash at Barcelona last month on his return to McLaren.

Sitting out the race in order to minimise the chance of suffering sudden-impact syndrome, Alonso will be keen to get reacquainted with a team where he spent an unhappy season in 2007 but judging by McLaren’s performance in Australia, any joy is expected to be short-lived.

Struggling for pace and reliability with the new Honda engine, McLaren team mate Jenson Button crawled around Albert Park to cross the line last of the 11 finishers, while Alonso’s stand-in Kevin Magnussen failed to start the race due to engine issues.

The Spaniard will be hoping the team have been able to make significant improvements since Australia two weeks ago and can at least make the car competitive enough to keep pace with the back-markers, something that was out of reach in Melbourne.

“I watched the weekend in Australia very closely and I was in touch with the team from the moment they arrived,” Alonso said of the season-opener.

“It’s clear we have a lot of work ahead of us but Jenson’s result in Melbourne was encouraging from the point of view of reliability and data collection, which are extremely important.”

Turning to his recovery from the pre-season crash, Alonso will need to pass a fitness test on Thursday before he can race but is looking forward to marking his return at a circuit he has enjoyed a fair amount of success, including three victories.

“I’ve been working hard on my fitness and I feel good and ready to go this weekend. The weekend will be tough but I’m looking forward to getting into the MP4-30 for the first time in a Grand Prix and getting back to racing.”

Up at the head of the field, Mercedes are once again expected to surge clear from the chasing pack with Hamilton and Rosberg continuing the battle for supremacy while the other teams scramble around for minor honours.

Four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel’s distant third place finish on his Ferrari debut was an encouraging start for a team seeking to reestablish itself among the elites but the Italian outfit can expect a tougher challenge from Williams in Malaysia.

The Mercedes-powered team lost Valtteri Bottas to injury following qualifying in Australia and the Finn and team mate Felipe Massa can expect a better performance from the Williams around the sweeping corners of the Hermann Tilke-designed track.

In a week when the sport suffered another blow with the dropping of the German Grand Prix from this season’s calendar for financial reasons, anything other than a Mercedes victory would be a welcome lift for a series in which monotony has replaced drama.

The chances of that happening remain slim, however, but Malaysia’s volatile weather could intervene as it did in 2012 when Alonso dodged the puddles in a modest Ferrari to win the race after qualifying ninth.

Malaysian Grand Prix facts & stats:

• Lap distance: 5.543 kilometres. Total distance: 310.408km (56 laps)
• Race lap record: Juan Pablo Montoya (Colombia) Williams 1:34.223 (2004)
• 2014 pole: Lewis Hamilton (Britain) Mercedes
• 2014 winner: Hamilton
• Start time: 0800 GMT (1500 local)
• Tyres: Medium (white), Hard (orange)
• Lewis Hamilton’s win in the Australian season-opener was the double world champion’s 34th in Formula One, and second in a row after last year’s Abu Dhabi season-ender. The Briton is fifth on the all-time list of winners.
• The last time Hamilton won in Australia, in 2008, he also ended the year as champion.
• Mercedes have now won the last eight races. They took a record 16 wins (from 19 races) last season. They have also chalked up 12 one-two finishes in 20 races.
• Of other current drivers, four-times champion Sebastian Vettel has 39 career wins, Fernando Alonso 32, Kimi Raikkonen 20 and Jenson Button 15.
• Ferrari have won 221 races, McLaren 182, Williams 114 and Red Bull 50. Mercedes have won 30.
• McLaren have not won for 39 races, a run that dates back to Brazil 2012. They went 48 races without a win from 1993-97.
• Ferrari have not won since Spain in May 2013, which was the last time a team other than Mercedes or Red Bull won. Last season was the first since 1993 without a Ferrari win.
• Mercedes have now been on pole for the last 12 races. The record for successive poles is 24 (Williams 1992/93).
• Mercedes and Williams were the only teams to start on pole last year.
• Ferrari’s last pole was in Germany with Alonso in 2012.
• Three drivers scored points for the first time in Melbourne. Brazilian Felipe Nasr and Spain’s Carlos Sainz became the 62nd and 63rd rookies to do so on their debuts.
• Marcus Ericsson finally scored for Sauber after failing to do so in 16 races for now-defunct Caterham. They were the first points for a Swedish driver since Stefan Johansson in 1989, before Ericsson was born.
• Nasr’s fifth place was the best result by a Brazilian driver on his debut.
• Sauber scored their first points in 20 races, ending the team’s longest barren run since they first entered the championship in 1993. They were one of only three teams to get two cars to the finish in Australia.
• Hamilton won from pole with the fastest lap last year.
• Vettel (2010, 2011, 2013) and Alonso (2005, 2007, 2012) are both three-times winners at Sepang. Raikkonen has won twice, Button and Hamilton once.
• Ferrari have won six of the 16 races held to date in Malaysia.
• Nine of the 16 have been won from pole. The lowest grid placing ending in victory was Alonso’s 2012 win from eighth place.
• Button took his first F1 podium at Sepang in 2004 and has started 15 times there, more than any other driver.
• Mercedes have Malaysian oil giant Petronas as title sponsor.
• The track is one of the most abrasive on the calendar with fast corners. Drivers are expected to make at least two stops (Hamilton won with three last year). Rain can be expected, with standing water a problem.
• Toro Rosso’s Max Verstappen, aged 17, became the youngest driver to start a Formula One race.
• Vettel finished third on his Ferrari debut, becoming the 56th driver for the team to stand on the F1 podium and third German after Michael Schumacher and Wolfgang von Trips.

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HAMILTON SET FOR A MILLION DOLLARS PER WEEK DEAL WITH MERCEDES

The end of reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton’s protracted negotiations with Mercedes regarding a new contract beyond 2015 may finally be close to conclusion with the Briton on course for a $55 million per year deal.

The reigning world champion has conducted his own talks with the German marque, amid swirling rumours of contact with Ferrari, and reports Hamilton recently bought one of the Maranello marque’s rare and expensive LaFerrari supercars.

But the 30-year-old Briton told Sky Sports on Tuesday that he is hoping his new deal will finally be done before this weekend’s Malaysian grand prix — a home race for Mercedes’ title sponsor Petronas.

“I mean, it’s going back (and forth) between the lawyers so I hope it is done before the weekend,” Hamilton confirmed. That would be great, but if not (it will be done) in due time.”

Times newspaper estimates the new Mercedes deal at an incredible $55 million per year for Hamilton, while the Telegraph said it could even be as much as $60 million, making him easily the highest paid driver on the grid.

However, the latter report cited “senior sources” who said an announcement is in fact “not expected this weekend”.

After being groomed from his karting days, and given his F1 race debut, by McLaren Hamilton left the Woking outfit to join Mercedes in 2013 in a deal believed to be worth $100 million for three years.

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FLASHBACK: RENAULT REMEMBER MALAYSIA 2005 WITH ALONSO

2015 marks the tenth anniversary of Renault F1 Team’s first world championship title. Fernando Alonso won his first World Championship with the Renault R25 in Brazil at the tail end of the season, but his title campaign really got started in Malaysia.

Team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella had taken the first blood with a win in Australia, but Fernando hit his stride at the second event in Sepang. The team appeared to have a big advantage over the rest of the field and Fernando took pole by over two tenths from the Toyota of Jarno Trulli.

At the start he opened up a lead, and looked in command for the rest of the race. It was far from easy though, and Fernando looked exhausted as he climbed onto the podium to claim the winner’s trophy.

His engine engineer at the time was Rémi Taffin, who recalled the race from behind the scenes, “We had gone to Melbourne and scored a one-three as a team, but Fisico had been in front. We’d actually made a mistake in qualifying with the fuel level and that had hurt Fernando so we arrived in Malaysia incredibly motivated.”

“We knew we had a good car and Fernando was on form. He loved Sepang – he’d scored his first pole and win there in 2003. We got the pole by some margin but Fernando had a fever on race day and didn’t feel great. He very nearly fainted when he got out the car, but he still managed to win by nearly 25secs. We were all so pleased – we knew we had a great driver on form – even when sick – and a great car.”

“The engine was also one of the best I’ve ever worked on, and certainly the best in the field that year. We had reworked the V10 concept and surprised everyone with how powerful and driveable it was. In this race Fernando had opened up a gap, then had it taken away with a safety car. Then he’d managed to expand it back to 25secs again. It made us really believe in ourselves and that we were in for a genuine shot at the championship.”

Back at the factory a small band of engineers were following the race on the big screen in Renault’s cinema room. One of them, Ricardo Penteado, who is now responsible for Viry’s operations room, was a dyno and simulation engineer at the time.

“There were only two or three people in the room as the race was very early for Europe,” Ricardo remembers. “The build up had been quite intense – even though we knew that we were well-organised and in control, there was a big effort to cope with Malaysia.

“Humidity was high and we had tweaked the engine maps to deal with this. Seeing Fernando win by such a comfortable margin showed we had done the sums right. I can remember sending the results of the race to the entire factory ; it was a great feeling. We got a bit overexcited at how far ahead we were so I even photoshopped my predications for the results of some future races and sent those as well… !”

[MIKA27]

LOTUS SLAMMED AGAIN FOR APPOINTING DEVELOPMENT PAY DRIVER

Lotus is once again taking under fire after naming another development driver who has done very little of merit to justify the appointment.

A month ago, the Enstone team signed up Carmen Jorda, a 26-year-old female driver, to attend races, work in the simulator and even test the new E23 car.

But after never rising above 28th place in her three GP3 championship campaigns so far, Lotus’ decision was roundly slammed.

“Carmen Jorda couldn’t develop a roll of film let alone a hybrid F1 car,” Rob Cregan, Jorda’s teammate in 2012, said on Twitter. Jorda dismissed the widespread criticism as jealously.

But now the same sort of criticism has returned, after Lotus said on Tuesday that another development driver in 2015 will be Adderly Fong, a 25-year-old, Canadian-born Hong Kong driver.

In a statement, the team said the news moves Fong “closer to his career goal of becoming the first Chinese formula one driver”, as he will attend grands prix and work on the simulator.

Lotus also said Fong is “an ideal candidate to help build towards a resurgence at Enstone”.

At the end of 2014, Fong made an appearance for Sauber in Abu Dhabi’s Friday practice session.

But it is believed Fong’s backers ‘bought’ that outing, and the same scepticism has now followed Tuesday’s Lotus news.

“Of course it would be good to have a Chinese driver in formula one,” F1 veteran and long-time British commentator Martin Brundle is quoted by Speed Week. “But the fact is Fong has been hired for his money.”

Daily Mail correspondent Phil Duncan agrees, pointing out that between Jorda and Fong, they have contested a combined five GP3 seasons and never won a single race or pole.

Taki Inoue, remembered as an average ‘pay driver’ in F1, remarked on his humorous Twitter profile: “It seems bank account development driver is getting popular in F1.”

[MIKA27]

BARRICHELLO SAYS HE FELL ASLEEP DURING 2015 F1 OPENER

A trio of former Formula 1 drivers are hoping the 2015 season opener in Melbourne was just a blip on the radar.

In Australia, Sauber battled for survival in court with Giedo van der Garde while Manor never left the pits, before the smallest field in recent memory set the scene for what Daniel Ricciardo called a “boring” race as Mercedes utterly dominated.

Afterwards, Red Bull threatened to quit in protest of the technical regulations, leaving F1 experts and pundits to wonder if the fundamentals of the sport are broken.

“I tried to watch, but I got to a point when I couldn’t stay awake,” Rubens Barrichello, the longest-serving driver in F1 history, admitted to Brazil’s Globo.

Former Renault driver Nelson Piquet jr added: “I didn’t see the race, but I heard about it and it was a shame that only 15 or 16 cars started.

“It’s a shame formula one is at that level. We want it to be back again when it was competitive, with many very strong cars.”

Finally, former McLaren driver and long-time commentator John Watson told the Daily Mail: “The sport, whether it is the governing body, the FIA or CVC, need to sit down and say ‘What are we doing? What are we trying to achieve? ‘And are we achieving it?'”

[MIKA27]

Ferrari look to get closer to Merc

Ferrari have set their sights on third and fourth in Malaysia while they also believe they can reduce the gap to Mercedes if they "get everything right".

The Scuderia made an impressive start to their 2015 campaign with many believing they are now Merc's closest challengers after Sebastian Vettel finished third behind Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg at the first race in Australia.

While everything went flawlessly for Mercedes, Ferrari had one or two issues and technical director James Allison believes they can edge closer to the pacesetters if they improve.

"Let's assume Mercedes don't make a mistake, with the gaps we saw in Melbourne we expect them at the front," he said.

"But we think we can be a fair bit closer to them if we get everything right - we didn't get everything right in Melbourne and in Malaysia we hope to, so I hope we can put our car in a strong third and fourth on the grid."

One of the biggest challengers for all teams in Malaysia will be the heat on and off the track.

"Sepang is obviously totally different climate but the track is not so different, we look at tracks normally in two main ways: how sensitive they are to horsepower and how sensitive they are to downforce," Allison said.

"If you look at Sepang compared with Melbourne in those ways then Sepang is very similar, so a car that was at a certain level of competitiveness in Melbourne should really inherit that at Sepang.

"The difference is Sepang is very hot and is therefore a challenge to keep the car at the right temperature and also the tyres at the right temperature, so that is a bigger deal than it was in Melbourne."

[MIKA27]

Honda still aiming to win a race this season - Arai

Honda headed into the 2015 season full of confidence that its engine would power McLaren to at least one victory, but that target now looks an impossibility.

The Woking team were plagued by problems during pre-season testing and only managed to get one car on the starting grid for the season opener in Australia.

Jenson Button managed to finish 11th, but was lapped by Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

Yet Honda's F1 boss Yasuhisa Arai is sticking to that target and reckons they could still achieve it if things progress quickly.

"When will we get a victory? Of course we want it to be this year," he told Autosport.

"We don't change our targets, but we had problems - like a pop-up game in the arcade - in winter testing that were unexpected.

"We had many concerns in winter testing so we didn't achieve the first target," he said, referring to their aim to have a 'mature' engine in Australia.

"But we are still working hard, so we don't change our other targets. [To win a race] this year is the aim."

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Six of the Best Wet Weather Races:

Looking ahead of the Malaysian GP, a race known for its challenging humidity and vicious storms, let's looks back at how Mother Nature has shaped some classic races over the years, and there have been many.

Wet races have been a mainstay of Formula One since the sport's inception in 1950. Although ostensibly a summer sport, or at least a series that follows prevailing fair weather across the globe, rain has been an enduring menace – and indeed almost an annual tradition at circuits such as Spa, the Nurburgring, Sepang and Interlagos, where geography dictates that inclement conditions are almost inevitable.

A wet race in Formula One is a giddily thrilling treat in and of itself, but mixed wet/dry races add fantastic unpredictability to the mix. One of the greatest guilty pleasures in watching Formula One is the sight of rain falling onto a dry track, and the teams and drivers facing the leveling quandary of whether to pit for wet tyres or attempt to gamble on braving it out on slicks to retain track position.

An unexpected rain shower has the ability to change the complexion of any race and add an enjoyable element of random chance to proceedings – making or breaking. Here, we celebrate six of Formula One's most memorable downpours.

The 2009 Malaysian GP remains one of the few occasions half points have been awarded in a race

2009 MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX

Since Formula One first visited the Sepang circuit on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur in 1999, 5 of the 16 Malaysian Grands Prix have been affected by rain.

For 2009, the race had been moved from its traditional 15:00 start time to a 17:00 slot in an attempt to boost the TV audience, putting the race in the heart of the window during which afternoon showers typically fall in Kuala Lumpur's tropical climate and pushing the maximum running time of two hours up against the very limits of daylight. Unsurprisingly, this blend of ingredients created a perfect storm in a very literal sense come raceday.

The race began under patchy skies, with sunny intervals flitting between ominously heavy looking clouds. The first 20 laps were run under dry conditions, with Nico Rosberg's Williams leading initially after a stunning start from fourth position, before Jenson Button's Brawn, which had started from pole, re-took the lead after the first pit stops.

Then, on lap 21, the rain began to fall, lightly at first, and all of the runners but one dashed into the pits for full wet tyres as the grip caused many drivers to take misadventures off the circuit. Timo Glock in the Toyota was sole driver who chose the intermediate tyre, and as the rain only doused half of the track initially he was able to pick off his rivals as they sought out wet patches to cool their blistering tyres.

On lap 29, Button, being caught hand over first by Glock, pitted for intermediates – just as fresh, much heavier, rain arrived. Now the race was simply a battle to stay on the track, as monsoon conditions doused the circuit and thunderbolts boomed dramatically overhead. Every driver was in for full wets by the end of lap 31, although Giancarlo Fisichella, Sebastian Buemi and Sebastian Vettel failed to make it back to the pits as they spun into retirement in the treacherous conditions.

The safety car emerged on lap 32, but the maxim 'it never rains, it pours' was in full tropical effect, and the sheer volume of both standing and falling water meant the race was ultimately red flagged on lap 33. Once the rain finally stopped it was too dark to re-start the race, so half points were awarded for just the fifth time in F1 history, and the first since the farcical 1991 Australian Grand Prix.

2008 BELGIAN GRAND PRIX

Spa-Francorchamps has always been infamous for its inclement conditions. The circuit, nestled among the Eifel Mountains in Belgium, enjoys a unique micro-climate that can cause conditions to change at the drop of a hat – a trait that has seen many a Belgian Grand Prix settled on the fluctuating fortunes of the weather.

Never was this more evident than in 2008, when a late shower completely changed the complexion of the race. The season was developing into a tense two-way championship showdown between McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and the Ferrari of Felipe Massa, and Spa played host to one of its most thrilling, and controversial, plot twists.

The title rivals qualified 1-2, but as the race started on a drying track Massa was jumped by his teammate and Spa specialist Kimi Raikkonen – aiming for his fourth straight Belgian GP win. On lap two, Raikkonen streaked past Hamilton on the Kemmel Straight after the Briton ran wide at La Source, and Raikkonen tore off into what seemed to be an unassailable lead.

The margin ebbed and flowed throughout the race, but as proceedings entered the last five laps Hamilton was still too far back to mount an attack. Then the rain began to fall, not sufficiently to force the drivers to pit for wet-weather tyres, but hard enough to grease the circuit – the kind of conditions that Hamilton thrived in.

With four laps to go, Hamilton was under a second behind Raikkonen and gaining rapidly as he profited from the slippery conditions. A lap later he was right behind Raikkonen as the McLaren and Ferrari blurred through Blanchimont as one. Into the bus stop, Hamilton braked hard on the outside but Raikkonen matched him, forcing the McLaren to cede the corner and cut the chicane. Hamilton backed off to let the Ferrari through as they crossed the start-finish line but was immediately back on the attack, diving down the inside into La Source to take the lead with two laps to go.

Then farce took hold. As rain fell heavily at the back of the circuit, Raikkonen slid wide at Pouhon as Hamilton came across a tiptoeing Nico Rosberg parked on the apex at the Campus chicane. Forced into evasive action, Hamilton ran off the road, ceding the lead for seconds before Raikkonen himself spun on the run-up to Stavelot. Two corners later Raikkonen's race ended for good, as he spun again in pouring rain at Blanchimont and slithered into the wall.

Hamilton crawled round the last lap as conditions deteriorated, heading home Massa and Nick Heidfeld's BMW for a famous win. Or so he thought. Hamilton was demoted to third after the stewards added a 25-second time penalty to his race time for cutting the chicane and gaining an advantage while passing Raikkonen – even though he had handed any gain straight back and continued racing from the position he had been in when Raikkonen forced him off the road. It wouldn't be the last time that a late race shower played a crucial role in that season's championship either…

Fernando Alonso survives the elements to win… which is more than can be said for Jenson Button behind him

2007 EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX

Just 60 miles east of Spa, on the German side of the Eifel Mountains, lies the Nürburgring. The modern Nürburgring GP-Strecke is a pale imitation of the original Nordschleife, but both incarnations enjoy the region's inimitably variable climate. Sudden downpours have been a contributing factor to many a classic race at the Nürburgring - although perhaps none can top the drama of Fernando Alonso's double-deluge victory at the 2007 European GP.

The political agenda and buildup may have been dominated by the beginning of the internal war that would rock the McLaren team to its foundations through the second half of the season, but the sporting focus of the race quickly shifted to the tail-end of the field and an unknown rookie named Markus Winkelhock.

Qualifying last, 1.5 seconds down on teammate Adrian Sutil, Winkelhock's expectations were no mightier than an afternoon of trundling mobile chicanery. However, inspired opportunism by Spyker Technical Director Mike Gascoyne at the end of the formation lap saw the team pit Winkelhock for wet tyres as rain began to fall ahead of the start.

In traditional Eifel Mountain style, the spots of rain became a deluge, and Spyker's gamble turned into a masterstroke. So slippery was the circuit that Kimi Räikkönen slithered straight through the pit entrance as the leaders flocked to the pits to change tyres at the end of lap one.

Winkelhock quickly assumed the lead, passing the crawling Räikkönen as monsoon-like conditions set in. At the end of lap 2, the Spyker incredibly led Felipe Massa by over 19 seconds. As a plethora of cars aquaplaned straight on at turn one, Winkelhock retained his composure to extend his lead to 33 seconds by lap 4.

With seven cars in the gravel trap at the first turn and the torrential conditions showing no signs of abating, the race was finally red-flagged on lap 5.

Opting to gamble again, Spyker kept Winkelhock on full wets for the restart, but on a drying track he was a sitting duck as the race resumed. Winkelhock was engulfed by Felipe Massa's Ferrari and Alonso into turn one, and quickly fell further back as his tyres disintegrated.

Massa subsequently led Alonso comfortably for virtually the entire race distance on a dry track, before a shower ten laps from home changed the dynamic of the race again. Massa and Alonso pitted for intermediates, and the McLaren wiped out the Ferrari's five second lead with ease as they returned to the track in increasingly greasy conditions.

Six laps from the end, Alonso was right with Massa exiting the first corner, and the two snaked their way through the sodden stadium section side by side – but the Ferrari held on. A lap later, championship challenge on the line, Alonso took a slingshot run around the outside of Massa at turn six, spectacularly banging wheels and forcing his way into the lead. Massa had no answer, and Alonso powered to the chequered flag to take his first, and possibly finest, wet weather victory.

1993 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX

The Interlagos circuit on the outskirts of Sao Paulo is another racetrack notorious for wet weather-addled race. Its name may mean 'between two lakes', but its frequently the track surface that resembles a water feature as tropical storms blow in to drench the bowl-like circuit. The 2012, 2008 and 2003 races are just some of the wet weather classics from the Brazilian Grand Prix's recent past, but for a true race-altering downpour it's hard to look past the stormy showers that affected the running midway through the 1993 edition.

The first race of the season, in South Africa, had seen a late-race deluge as Alain Prost held on to claim victory for Williams on his F1 comeback. Round 2 at Interlagos would repeat the pattern, although this time with dire consequences for the returning three-time champion.

Prost led comfortably at the start from pole position, ignoring the carnage caused by an enormous airborne shunt for McLaren rookie Michael Andretti at the first corner to build up a substantial lead through the first part of the race.

Prost's great rival and hometown hero Ayrton Senna ran second for McLaren in the first part of the race, but he could do nothing about the searing pace of the Williams – and his challenge was further hampered by a stop-go penalty for lapping a backmarker under yellow flags on lap 25.

As Senna re-emerged the heavens opened, and the conditions were part of a double dose of good fortune for the Brazilian wet-weather specialist. As Aguri Suzuki aquaplaned into the wall on the main straight, blocking the course, the safety car was deployed – although not before Prost had spun himself out of the race via a synchronised spinning collision with Christian Fittipaldi's Footwork at turn one.

The race restarted on lap 38, with Senna right in the slipstream of Damon Hill's Williams on a still-wet track. Two laps later, as the circuit dried rapidly in the searing Sao Paulo heat, Senna was in for slicks – embarking on a trademark display of mastery in deploying dry tyres on a slipper surface. Hill pitted two laps later, but was a sitting duck to Senna when he emerged from the pits – the McLaren charging past the Williams into Ferradura.

Senna coasted to his second home victory, leading Hill home by 16 seconds to take the delirious acclaim of his countrymen. In a straight fight in the dry Senna had no match for the dominant Williams FW15C, but, maximising the turbulent conditions and Prost's misfortune he was able to take a memorable victory.

1982 MONACO GRAND PRIX

Unfortunately for Prost, Brazil 1993 wasn't the first time a mistake in tricky conditions had cost him a seemingly cast-iron victory. The conclusion to the 1982 Monaco Grand Prix was one of Formula One's most memorable denouements, and at the centre of the narrative was a late race shower that turned a processional parade into a jumbled jambouree.

Starting fourth for Renault, Prost quickly dispensed with Riccardo Patrese's Brabham and Bruno Giacomelli's Alfa Romeo to take second place behind fast-starting pole-sitter and Renault teammate Rene Arnoux. After Arnoux spun out on lap 15, Prost inherited the lead and comfortably headed Patrese for 60 fairly uneventful laps before the narrative changed dramatically as the race neared its conclusion.

Spots of rain started peppering the circuit from around lap 67, creating an added layer of difficulty around Monaco's tunnel-like streets. After a race of high attrition there were very few runners left to deal with the changeable elements – but that also meant fewer cars to help clear the surface drizzle from the tarmac. The steady shower created a surface like sheet ice for the slick-shod runners, and Prost came unstuck just two laps from home – bouncing his Renault off the barriers on both sides on the run down to Tabac.

This left Patrese in the lead and en route to take his maiden victory, but remarkably he too hit a damp patch and spun at Leows on the penultimate tour, stalling his Brabham as he rolled backwards over the high kerbs. Didier Pironi's Ferrari, Andrea de Cesaris' Alfa Romeo and Derek Daly's Williams all passed the foundering Brabham before Patrese was able to bump start his car by rolling down the hill towards Portier.

Pironi, sporting a mangled front wing, led the dwindling field onto the last lap, but remarkably he ran out of fuel in the tunnel – handing the advantage to de Cesaris. Incredibly, before the Italian could overhaul the Brabham he too ran out of fuel and the next man down the road, Derek Daly (already driving with a broken front wing and no rear wing!), saw his gearbox seize up as he crossed the line to start the final tour. Patrese miraculously exited the last corner to take the cheqeuered flag, having thought that he, like Prost, had thrown it all away in the greasy conditions.

Heinz-Harald Frentzen slides to the first two wins for the Jordan team in a successful 1999 season

1999 FRENCH GRAND PRIX

A mid-race downpour in and of itself is a great thing, affording the chance to enjoy the great levelling aspect of the rain and the opportunity it affords for underdogs to have their day. In terms of guilty pleasures though it ranks just behind the topsy-turvy grid order almost invariably produced by a wet qualifying session. Combine the two and you have strong ingredients for a classic race, which is exactly what the 1999 French Grand Prix served up.

In a season hitherto dominated by the usual Ferrari and McLaren suspects, the wet qualifying session threw up an enjoyable lottery-style grid, with Rubens Barrichello claiming pole position for Stewart ahead of Jean Alesi's Sauber and the Prost-Peugeot of Olivier Panis. The race started in dry conditions, which caused a frantic scramble to reassert the natural order as the McLarens and Ferraris charged through the field.

David Coulthard briefly led for McLaren before suffering a complete electrical failure, and with Michael Schumacher's Ferrari set up for a wet race he was powerless to prevent Mika Hakkinen's McLaren passing him and taking up the challenge to Barrichello, Alesi and the fast-charging Jordan of Heinz-Harald Frentzen – stoically racing after breaking bones in his knee at the Canadian GP two weeks previously.

Then the rain came, falling harder than at any point during qualifying and catching out Alesi and Giancarlo Fisichella amidst a mad scramble to reach the pits and change to wet tyres. Even with the safety car deployed, Jacques Villeneuve, Alex Wurz and Alex Zanardi all managed to spin off while running behind it due to the sheer amount of standing water on the road.

The race restarted on lap 35, still under full wet conditions, and the field resumed their fierce squabbling in earnest. Barrichello defended his lead staunchly from first Hakkinen, causing the McLaren to spin down to seventh place, and subsequently Schumacher – before the Ferrari eventually muscled past on lap 44.

The typically bullet-proof Ferrari then experienced electrical gremlins, wiping out Schumacher's lead to Barrichello and forcing him to pit early for fuel. As the laps ticked away all of the front-runners, now led by a recovering Hakkinen, made their final 'splash and dash' fuel stops. All except Frentzen that is. In a masterstroke the Jordan team had fuelled him to the finish when he first stopped for wet tyres, and with the field bunched together by the safety car period and slower cars holding up the fast runners Frentzen was able to sail past almost by stealth and into an insurmountable lead.

He crossed the line from Hakkinen and Barrichello for both his and the Jordan team's second victory. It was a win which owed as much to Frentzen's skill behind the wheel as the tactics on the pit wall – not to mention the perfectly timed mid-race downpour that made his winning strategy possible.

[MIKA27]

John Watson: Too much self-interest in F1

Former Formula 1 race winner, and 1982 world championship contender, John Watson has echoed the concerns of other observers, insisting that those at its heart need to realise that they are among the root causes of its current decline.

With Mercedes having taken up the mantle of the previously dominant Red Bull team, and Caterham having been lost for good, F1 heads into 2015 with worries at both ends of the grid, but it is the latter that is of most concern to Watson, who believes that it is more than just the tail-enders in danger of implosion.

“F1 needs to get out of the hole it's in, but the trouble is the teams are all playing political games,” the Northern Irishman told Britain's Guardian newspaper as teams prepared for this weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix, “F1 has a major problem, but the sport is putting its head in the sand. Two-thirds of the grid are struggling, and barely able to make it to the race. Right now, F1 needs to have a good look at itself and decide what it is trying to achieve.

“The product is in need of a massive kickstart, [but] to get teams to agree to anything, they all want something back - some of the teams haven't got the wisdom to realise that they might have to give up something to save what has been such a fantastic sport for the last 40 years. There is too much self-interest.”

The 68-year old driver-turned-commentator – who drove for Brabham, Surtees, Lotus, Penske and McLaren during a lengthy F1 career – also reserved some of his ire for those making the rules, claiming that the promoter and governing body appeared content to let the sport's malaise strip it of the smaller teams that helped contribute to the spectacle.

“Bernie Ecclestone has done a phenomenal job for [owners] CVC, but somebody needs to step in because of the dire state the middle and bottom of the grid is in,” Watson insisted, “You can't have a race with just four big teams.”

In particular, the five-time race winner sees the unnecessary switch to V6 turbo engines not only as playing a major part in the current high cost of competing, but also for removing competition at the front of the field.

After another drubbing in Melbourne, the cracks are beginning to show in the previously-triumphant Red Bull-Renault partnership, underlining the problems being caused by a lack of performance in Mercedes' wake.

“The regulations do not allow you to produce an entirely new engine this year, so the teams have to make the most of their development tokens - but that means that Mercedes, who have got everything spot on, are now enjoying complete domination,” Watson fumed, “Another problem has been the reduction in testing time, again to cut costs – and, this season, teams have only four engines instead of five, so no one wants to do mileage because of the meagre engine allowance. Yet these hybrid engines are so complicated that everybody needs track time. Half the problem is bloody procedures. It's nuts, total nuts.”

[MIKA27]

'We’ll be back in Germany', says Gastaldi

Lotus deputy team principal Federico Gastaldi believes that the German Grand Prix will return to the F1 calendar, despite being unable to fulfil its obligations this year.

The World Motor Sport Council officially confirmed that promoters had not been able to reach an agreement over holding the event at the Hockenheimring in July, after original host the Nurburgring confirmed late last year that it would not be able to commit to staging the grand prix as part of the rotation system that had been in place for several years.

With the Hockenheimring's new owners struggling to reach an agreement with the sport's commercial rights holders on a deal to host a 'replacement' event this summer, the race was officially scratched this weekend. While it means a break in the run of German grands prix that stretches back to 1960, no decision has been made on the 2016 event, due to be staged at Hockenheim as per the alternating venue arrangement, and Gastaldi remains confident that the event will be back on the schedule.

“It's not looking promising for this year, but I'm sure we'll be back in 2016,” the Italian insisted, “It is, of course, a shame for everyone, especially all the German fans who wanted to come see F1, but these things happen sometimes in the commercial world. For the team we know we have 19 races - 20 races makes for a long season so we still have a pretty full season even if one race is dropped.”

On a more positive note, Gastaldi was full of praise for last weekend's Australian Grand Prix – even if the action on track failed to live up to expectation.

“On many levels, the event delivered spectacularly,” he claimed, “The crowds were fantastic, the organisation was exemplary and it's a pleasure to start the season in Melbourne.

“The official ticket sales information say that there were 101,500 spectators on Sunday, which is a very impressive rise compared to last year's sales. F1 is back on track and we must all say 'thanks a million' to Ron Walker for a magnificent job done from you and your fantastic team through 20 great races. F1 will miss your exemplary personality and entrepreneurship enthusiasm!”

Seeing Mercedes romp away with the race cast a sense of foreboding over the F1 paddock, but Gastaldi maintains that there will be no conceding the fight just yet.

“In terms of this year's track action, we can't say that it was a classic race, and not only because our cars weren't involved in most of it!” he reflected, “That said, you never know what might happen in the first race of the season. There were some good battles down the field and some very good debuts from new drivers. It's clear all of us have some work to do to take the battle to Mercedes, but that's what we're all working hard for.”

[MIKA27]

Ferrari F1 boss says no need to panic over Mercedes' advantage

Ferrari team principal Maurizio Arrivabene says there is no need to panic about the advantage Mercedes currently has in Formula 1.

Sebastian Vettel scored a podium on his Ferrari debut in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, while Kimi Raikkonen was on-course for at least fifth before a wheelnut problem.

It was a much improved performance from a team that was the fourth best on merit in 2014 and it led Arrivabene to suggest Ferrari should focus on Mercedes rather than looking over its shoulder to Williams and Red Bull.

However, the team made mistakes during qualifying, having believed it had a car capable of at P3 on the grid, while Raikkonen encountered problems during both his stops in the race.

And Vettel finished the Australian Grand Prix more than 30 seconds adrift of pace-setter Mercedes, which took a comfortable one-two with Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

"It's just a question of continuing like this with our technology, working and respecting our programme without panicking," said Arrivabene.

"We need to also keep the spirit of the team up.

"For the team I was happy, but as a team principal only half of me was happy because one car was stopped on the track and the other guys were on the podium.

"So for me we have done half the job."

Raikkonen said after the Australian GP that he believes Ferrari is much closer to Mercedes in race trim than it is on one-lap pace.

"The car is obviously not fast enough yet but I think the gap is much smaller in the race than qualifying," said the Finn.

"I believe in the race we can be up there and fight at the front."

[MIKA27]

Silverstone wants to reduce British Grand Prix F1 ticket prices

Silverstone is hoping to continue pushing down ticket prices for the British Grand Prix as it bids to make hosting Formula 1 sustainable.

The German Grand Prix dropped off the calendar last week after Hockenheim gave up hope of hosting the race.

Silverstone is privately-owned and receives no government funding so it faces a challenge to afford the race fee and survive as a viable business.

The management was given an overhaul late last year with Patrick Allen replacing Richard Phillips as managing director, and the new regime has already implemented sweeping changes.

A ticket for the British Grand Prix was among one of the most expensive on the F1 calendar in 2014, but earlier this year, Allen began plans to change by cutting prices.

"When I came up with the idea for a £99 ticket, I was told you can't do that, it's madness," Allen told AUTOSPORT.

"But I said, let's try it. So we put 1000 tickets on sale and they sold out in 22 minutes.

"We kept the promotion going until 5pm on the day and we sold 6000 tickets.

"In total, we took 18,000 calls. It clogged the lines up.

"So we know the demand is out there. People want to come but they haven't been able to because of the price."

Silverstone says ticket sales are 30 per cent up on last year with a major ticket price overhaul planned for the future.

"We want to make the ticketing structure transparent," said Allen. "If you buy tickets early on, you'll get the best deal.

"As you get nearer the event, it costs more. The plan is to introduce that next year."

When asked Silverstone plans to continue to drive down prices with early bird deals, Allen said: "I would like to think we can achieve that."

[MIKA27]

VETTEL: IN MALAYSIA ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN WE MUST ATTACK

Sebastian Vettel told media ahead of the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend that Ferrari must attack as anything is possible in Sepang

“In Malaysia, anything can happen, so our target should not be just to establish our position. We must attack and try and close the gap to Mercedes and with the conditions you can get here, a win is always possible,” ventured Vettel.

“Now it’s up to us to confirm that in the next couple of races and make sure we progress. With this year’s car, from the first day I was happy with the balance. I like the flow the car has.”

The four times world champion, in his first year with the Maranello outfit, finished third in his first race for the team in Australia, and wants more of the same.

“We must work to establish ourselves in the position we were in in Australia, ideally a little bit closer to Mercedes and a little bit further ahead of Williams. It will be very close between us and Williams and also Red Bull: it’s only a question of time as to when they will come back.”

“We will tackle the weekend as usual, trying to get the car in the right window to get into a rhythm.”

The German also explained why he turned down Nico Rosberg’s offer to attend a Mercedes briefing, “Do you imagine if I went there, they would really open up?”

“I was joking, if you have an advantage you don’t want to give it out. Of course you can learn from other people, but we have a lot of intelligence in our team and I think from last year to this year we seem to have made a good step.”

Asked about the general state of Formula 1 as the sport goes into a second season under new V6 turbo hybrid rules, Vettel said, “In terms of excitement there are some things we miss and speaking to the fans the noise is one of those.”

“Then, as a driver, you always want to go quicker. But the things you enjoy are always the same: driving one of the quickest cars in the world and competing against the best drivers,” added Bettel.

[MIKA27]

BUTTON: I THINK WE WILL BE RIGHT AT THE BACK

Although Jenson Button believes that McLaren-Honda will have gained some performance since the season opener in Melbourne, he still believes it will not be enough and is expecting to run at the back during the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Speaking to Sky at Sepang, Button said, “I think we will have a good gain in performance, but still I think we will be right at the back and I am not sure we will be able to race anyone.”

“We were a long way behind in Melbourne, so even if we have a reasonably big gain I think we will still be at the back, but hopefully a lot closer. We just need to keep seeing these big steps forward at every race.”

“The temperature is tough and we have a lot of things that should help with that. Overheating was a bit of an issue for us with certain areas of the power unit and we will see what happens here,” explained the 2009 world champion.

“It is two weeks and you have a good understanding of what the car is doing in the heat of 18c in Melbourne and you can play around with it and add cooling and fans in certain areas that you think are necessary.”

“For us, it was always going to be difficult. In winter testing we only did 12 laps so to get stable temperatures in 12 laps is very difficult so maybe in the race we were cooler than expected, but it is too late then,” concluded Button who will start his 270th grand prix on Sunday in Malaysia.

[MIKA27]

RED BULL AUDI? TOYOTA? NISSAN? PORSCHE? VW?

Things are not rosy at Infiniti Red Bull Racing. Calling your partner a liar before the second race as Renault’s F1 engine chief, Cyril Abiteboul did toward Red Bull’s Adrian Newey, shows the strains in the relationship but the cracks have been appearing for some time.

Both Christian Horner and Newey have been critical of Renault for a good part of last season and now it appears Renault needed to fire back.

Speaking to Horner at Silverstone last year – with Renault’s minders in earshot – he didn’t hold back, telling me that the engine was their “biggest handicap” being 80bhp down. But how do you come back after being called liars? The trust has gone and that would be my green light to search for a new technical partner.

Yet switching is not easy. The Red Bull/Renault alliance is an intricate weave with strings that stretch from the UK to Austria, France, Japan and Hong Kong.

If you walk through the Milton Keynes factory you will see bespoke manufacturing for Infiniti’s road cars. The team has access to Renault/Nissan’s 90,000 engineers and in return, the car giant can tap the race team’s 400 F1 brains.

Sebastian Vettel was Infiniti’s “Director of Performance” which required regular Hong Kong visits to discuss future models and test prototypes. We’ve not heard of Daniel Ricciardo taking over that role and while I’m sure he would if asked, it’s another sign that the relationship is not as cosy as it once was.

So who’s ready to power the four-time world champions if it came to that?

Volkswagen floated the idea of Formula 1 a few years back before diverting to Porsche’s WEC program and Le Mans return, to take on – of all things – its own company with Audi, the undisputed kings of WEC and Le Mans.

So now newcomers Porsche fight with the 13-time Le Mans winners over the same boardroom table for engineering and marketing budget to compete in the same series and that just doesn’t make sense.

Audi can leave WEC and hold its head high, allowing VW to keep dominating that arena with Porsche and take with it years of small-engine, hybrid technology to F1.

Toyota used endurance racing to build an F1 team and the only place Audi can go in WEC is down, most likely losing to its neighbours from across the hallway. In the meantime, it’s going to be a character-testing year for all at Infiniti Red Bull Racing.

[MIKA27]

ROSBERG DISAPPOINTED VETTEL TURNS DOWN DEBRIEF INVITE

Sebastian Vettel has turned down Nico Rosberg’s invitation to attend his Mercedes engineering briefing in Malaysia.

In Australia, the rival Germans exchanged verbal blows in the press conference when Rosberg suggested he would be happy if Vettel’s Ferrari caught up.

“Engineers room, debrief — I’ll be there,” Vettel grinned.

“Friday, Malaysia, ok,” said Rosberg.

Rosberg duly arranged with his Mercedes bosses Niki Lauda and Toto Wolff to allow Vettel to attend the briefing, announcing the news in a major German newspaper and on his Facebook account.

And in the team’s official pre-race preview, Rosberg was quoted as saying: “I’m particularly looking forward to welcoming our special guest Mr Vettel to the Friday engineering meeting.”

On the eve of the meeting, however, Vettel told the media he sniffs a publicity stunt of sorts.

“I got the growing impression that the story was degenerating into a PR stunt,” he was quoted at Sepang by Auto Motor und Sport. “It was all a bit staged for my taste.

“I think I will better use my time on Friday to go to our briefings at Ferrari,” added Vettel, insisting the Italian team is “intelligent” enough without Mercedes’ help.

Rosberg was disappointed to hear it, dismissing the theory that it was just a stunt.

“Sebastian really could have come,” he said. “Maybe there would have been two or three details that we would not have put on the table, but he could have listened to what I feel from the car and how it behaved in practice.”

[MIKA27]

HAMILTON: I FIND IT FUNNY [THAT RED BULL ARE MOANING]

Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton admitted he was amused by Red Bull boss Christian Horner’s calls for the sport to forcibly reduce his Mercedes team’s advantage.

Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two ahead of Nico Rosberg in Melbourne a fortnight ago and such was their dominance, a continuation of last season’s supremacy, that Horner suggested measures may be needed to balance out the field.

“I find it quite funny,” the Briton told reporters at Sepang on Thursday ahead of the Malaysian Grand Prix. “Also it’s only been one race, so to already have comments after the first race is what I find funny.”

Hamilton noted that Horner made few complaints when Red Bull claimed four constructors’ titles in a row from 2010, with Sebastian Vettel winning the world title on each season, and said Mercedes had never voiced any displeasure during that period.

“It’s an interesting opinion coming from individuals who have had so much success,” Hamilton added. “On the personal side it was a big step for me to come to this team that had so many years of poor performance… they hadn’t had the success of other teams.”

“Not once did this team ever complain to others in order to equalise things, they just worked their arses off. We’ve pulled together and done an amazing job and I’m really very proud of that.”

Hamilton remains confident that Mercedes will stay ahead of the pack in Malaysia but is wary of the threat posed by his team mate in an evenly matched car.

“I think Nico will be quick this weekend and he’ll be pushing as hard as he always did last year in qualifying,” he added. “I’ve just got to try and keep up the momentum from the last race if I can.”

Rosberg admitted qualifying was important in Malaysia but claimed that other factors needed to be taken into account to affect the outcome of the race.

“Yes, qualifying is important in this internal battle since we have the same cars but it’s not everything,” the German said.

“We have seen in the past that playing around with tyre order or things like that, it is still possible to overtake and this weekend here, there might be a bit more leeway in the strategy to try and launch a better attack.”

[MIKA27]

ALONSO: WE DEFINITELY HAD A STEERING PROBLEM

Fernando Alonso said on the eve of the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend that he crashed in Barcelona last month because the steering on his McLaren locked.

The news has thickened the already convoluted plot even more, after weeks of rumours, speculation and contradiction in what will be remembered as one of the most bizarre incidents in the history of F1.

Mere days ago, McLaren insisted that there is no evidence the crash was caused by a car problem, except that Alonso recalls ‘heavy’ steering.

We reported that the 33-year-old’s steering actually locked, Alonso confirmed those rumours on Thursday ahead of the Malaysian grand prix.

“We definitely had a steering problem – it locked to the right,” he told ranks of reporters in the FIA press conference.

In another contradiction, Alonso denies suffering any loss of memory of the incident, and said he was conscious before, during and afterwards.

“There is a time that I don’t remember in the hospital,” said the Spaniard, but he said he only lost consciousness due to medication administered in the circuit medical centre before being airlifted by helicopter.

“I remember everything. I was perfectly conscious,” said Alonso. “I didn’t wake up in 1995, or speaking in Italian, or any other things that were out there.”

As for McLaren and Ron Dennis’ theory that a gust of wind blew him off the track, Alonso said, “A hurricane wouldn’t have blown the car off at that speed. No, no. Definitely not.”

As Alonso spoke, the brows of the listening journalists furrowed. Some of them let the two-time world champion know that his answers have simply multiplied the confusion about the February 22 incident.

“Probably the first press conferences and quotes that the team gave was just some guessing,” he explained, adding that his hospitalisation in intensive care caused “high stress” and an “urgency” for the team to brief the media “that probably created a bit of confusion.”

He dismissed claims a pre-existing medical condition was the cause, saying that he is “perfectly healthy” and in the wake of numerous tests and checks joked that he is now “the most medically-checked driver in history”.

However, if Alonso’s claims about ‘locked’ steering are true, he might be forgiven for feeling nervous about returning to the cockpit given that McLaren has not found a technical reason for the crash.

“Not really,” he answered when asked if he is worried. “It was clear that there was a problem with the car, but it’s not found in the data. I understand completely and support the team. I have zero doubts, zero concerns.”

He said he was using a different “steering rack” for his personal driving preference in Barcelona, but has now returned to the standard layout run by teammate Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen.

Alonso also confirmed that new sensors have been added to the car that will help detect similar faults in the future.

“I fully trust the team,” he said, “and they’ve spent a month changing every single part that they had any doubts about. I think we have the safest car now.”

[MIKA27]

BOTTAS: I REALLY FELT LIKE SOMEONE HAD PUT IN A KNIFE

Valtteri Bottas says modifications have been made to his Williams ahead of the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend, in an effort to keep him comfortable int he wake of his back injury suffered during qualifying in Melbourne.

The Finn got clearance from FIA doctors on Thursday to return for Williams this weekend in Malaysia, after tearing a disc in his lower back two weeks ago.

His manager, Mika Hakkinen, speculated that a problem with his seat may have caused the problem over the bumps in Melbourne.

“We have a good idea what caused it,” Bottas confirmed at Sepang, “and have changed the seat and pedal positions. My back is now in more of a neutral position.”

He said he is confident the problems will not arise again, and denied speculation that surgery to completely correct the issue will be necessary.

“It’s good, no pain, so that’s nice. The end of last week I could do something without pain, and during the weekend I could do some training, swimming and cross training, without any pain.”

“The recovery was really good. We did everything we can in this short period of time, but luckily it was two weeks, and I feel confident to go back in the car.”

“I’ve never had any problems before with the lower back, and obviously that kind of thing takes a bit of time to build up. There was no warning, it just went suddenly, I never had any pain before. It was maximum braking into Turn 13, and it was the last timed lap of qualy 2.”

“I really felt like someone had put in a knife, and then it was ramping up, the pain, until midnight. Luckily then it started to ease off during the night and then in the morning I would have been ready to race,” added Bottas.

[MIKA27]

WILLIAMS APPOINT SUTIL AS RESERVE DRIVER

Williams have appointed experienced German racer Adrian Sutil as reserve driver for the season, the Formula 1 team said on the eve of the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend.

“I’m delighted to have Adrian join our stable of drivers for the 2015 season,” team principal Frank Williams said of the veteran of 128 grands prix.

“Having most recently raced during the 2014 season also gives him excellent knowledge of the current generation of race car and new Hybrid power units, which is invaluable for anyone needing to step into the cockpit in 2015.

“The fight for a top Constructors’ Championship position will be intense this season, therefore we have selected a driver with recent race experience and are confident that if the need arose, he would be a solid pair of hands to race the FW37,” added Williams.

The former champions, who finished third overall last year, have Susie Wolff as a test driver and 21-year-old Briton Alex Lynn as a development driver but neither have raced in F1 before.

Williams’s lack of a reserve ready to step in if needed at short notice was highlighted after Finland’s Valtteri Bottas hurt his back in qualifying in Australia and was unable to race in the season-opener.

Bottas was passed fit at Sepang on Thursday and will return alongside Brazilian team mate Felipe Massa at the Mercedes-powered team.

Sutil lost his seat at Sauber at the end of last year and previously raced for Spyker and Force India after making his debut in 2007.

[MIKA27]

Malaysia promoter: FOM must improve F1 spectacle

The organiser of the Malaysian Grand Prix has urged Formula One Management to respond to the decline in interest in F1 racing.

Sepang International Circuit CEO Dato’ Razlan Razlai says interest is waning in F1 and that viewers have found recent races boring and singled out the season-opening racing in Australia, where just 15 cars started, as an example.

The circuit’s contract to host its round of the championship is up for renewal at the end of the season, and Dato’ Razlan says he is “reminding” FOM that “something needs to be done”.

Tickets sales to local spectators are in decline, but Dato’ Razlan believes they can make the race more appealing to families because of the quieter sound of the new generation of engines.

“We have gone all out to make the year’s F1 grand prix attractive for the whole family,” he said.

“In terms of the race itself, we have noticed that the quieter V6 turbo hybrid engine is actually friendlier to young spectators, compared to the roar of the older V8 engines. The noise of the race is less stressful for young ears. There is less need for [earplugs] and parents can explain the race to children on the spot.”

Race needs “a local hero”

However he believes having a Malaysian driver on the starting grid would do wonders for the sport’s profile.

“For any event, especially a sporting event, the passion of local support and the interest in the domestic market is crucial,” said Dato’ Razlan. “For F1 in Malaysia this is a challenge that we face. We do not currently have a viable local hero, and people have been asking when they can see a local hero among the F1 contenders.”

“Looking at the extremely high entry barriers to F1, particularly in terms of funding, it would be wonderful if there were lower tiers that follow the F1, so that we might have a chance of placing a young Malaysian driver there, to create a glimpse of hope for a local hero. Then I can foresee Malaysians coming back to the circuits in droves for F1.”

The only Malaysian driver to have competed in the race is Alex Yoong, who did so with Minardi in 2002. Fairuz Fauzy is the only other Malaysian driver to have participated in the race weekend when he drove for Lotus in the practice session for the 2010 race.

Bernie Ecclestone has previously said he wants the Malaysian Grand Prix to become a night race. However Dato’ Razlan remains cool on the idea, saying that by holding the race in the daytime spectators can “get the look and feel of the track better ­‐ we have a lot of greenery, gravel beds – we have the feel of a proper race track”.

[MIKA27]

Early start time to reduce risk of rain delay

The Malaysian Grand Prix is the race all drivers have in mind when they hit the gym during the off-season.

Fierce heat exceeding 30C, energy-sapping humidity and a fast track make for one of the most punishing tests of their endurance the calendar has to offer.

On top of that, the ever-present threat of rain keeps them on their toes. Forecasting when a shower might be about to break is notoriously difficult – recall how McLaren and Ferrari were caught out during qualifying in 2010.

Qualifying has been affected by rain on F1’s last two visits to Malaysia, and local forecasts again suggest the highest risk of storms will come on Saturday. But this is an especially volatile climate where forecasts can change in a hurry.

As was also the case with Australia, this is another race where the start time has been brought forward by an hour to reduce the risk of the race ending in darkness, following Jules Bianchi’s crash in last year’s Japanese Grand Prix.

Malaysia’s start time has been moved several times in recent years. In 2009 Formula One Management pushed the it back to 5pm to ensure the race would be broadcast in the late morning in Europe. However a delay due to rain meant the race was abandoned 25 laps short of full distance and only half points could be awarded.

Despite Ecclestone’s insistence the late start time had not contributed to the abandonment of the race, the 2010 grand prix began an hour earlier, at 4pm local time. This year’s race will start at 3pm, with sunset due at around 7:20pm.

[MIKA27]

Ferrari's James Allison & Simone Resta talk about Malaysian GP