Webber leads Red Bull one-two

• Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel take honours at Nürburgring• Felipe Massa finishes third with Jenson Button back in fifthMark Webber has won the German grand prix from pole, beating his Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel into second place after strong challenges from Rubens Barrichello and third-placed Felipe Massa. The world championship leader Jenson Button finished in fifth place.It was Webber's maiden Formula One victory, on his 130th attempt, and Vettel's second-place finish cuts Button's championship lead to 21 points with eight races remaining. Button now has 68 points, Vettel moves up to second on 47 and Webber is third on 45.5.Lewis Hamilton had a bad day after being forced into the pits shortly after the start with a puncture. He made a strong start from fifth but ran wide after turn one. He returned to the track but was bumped from behind almost immediately.As the first Australian to win a grand prix since Alan Jones in 1981 in Las Vegas, Webber said: "It's an incredible day for me. I wanted to win so badly. The only thing I thought would beat me, or test me, would be the rain – but that held off. But it's a great day for me. The team have been incredibly patient with me, and I want to thank them and [owner] Dietrich [Mateschitz] and all the Australian people."Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Webber added: "There's no doubt about it, [the drivers' and constructors' championships] are both up for grabs. We're taking the fight to the big guys, who will be back. But it is a special time for our team, that's for sure."Vettel had no complaints with his second spot, saying: "He was unbeatable. But it's another one-two for the team, so I'm very happy. I wanted to win, but Mark did a better job in qualifying."Webber was deposed from pole on the first turn by Barrichello. The two clashed wheels, with the Brazilian coming out on top, and they led the pack for the next 10 laps until the stewards announced a drivethrough penalty for Webber for causing a collision, which he duly served at the end of lap 14. Barrichello made his first routine stop at the same time.Over the next few laps, with Massa and his Ferrari team-mate Kimi Raikkonen heavy on fuel, they sandwiched Barrichello in first, second and third. The Finn eventually pitted at the end of lap 24, followed a lap later by Massa, allowing Barrichello to resume the lead, followed closely by the Force India of Adrian Sutil.The German had started from a career-high seventh on the grid, and was certainly in with a shout of giving his team their first points in their 27-race history. But after making his first stop at the end of lap 28, Sutil then emerged narrowly ahead of seventh-placed Raikkonen running down into turn one. As they swept round the sharp right-hand hairpin side by side, the Ferrari clipped the left side of the Force India's front wing, with the stewards again obliged to review the matter. It forced Sutil back into the pits at the end of that lap for a new nose cone, relegating him to 17th and out of the running for points.With the first round of stops finally completed at half-race distance, Barrichello held just a 2.8sec cushion over Webber. Button, running third at the time, pitted again on lap 31, as part of a clear three-stop strategy, unlike Barrichello who came in a lap later and was fuelled to the end.On lap 43, Webber made his third trip into the pits and second for fuel and tyres at a time when he held a 20-second lead over his team-mate Vettel – dropping in just behind the German. However, he soon regained the lead when Vettel pitted on lap 44 – soon followed by Massa on the 45th. On three-stop strategies and with the Brawn duo running in close attendance to one another, Barrichello surprisingly pitted first on lap 50 – followed by Button a lap later. Button then finished strongly to emerge just ahead of his team-mate in fifth place.Final positions1 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1hr 36min 43.310sec2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1:36:52.5623 Felipe Massa (Br) Ferrari 1:36:59.2164 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:37:04.4095 Jenson Button (GB) Brawn GP 1:37:06.9196 Rubens Barrichello (Br) Brawn GP 1:37:07.7987 Fernando Alonso (Sp) Renault 1:37:08.1668 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 1:37:41.4029 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:37:44.71010 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:37:45.21011 Giancarlo Fisichella (It) Force India 1:37:45.63712 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:37:46.18713 Nelson Piquet Jr (Br) Renault 1:37:51.63814 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:37:52.86515 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:37:55.21016 Sébastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:38:13.51017 Jarno Trulli (It) Toyota 1:38:14.21018 Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren at 1 LapNot Classified: 19 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 34 Laps completed, 20 Sébastien Bourdais (Fr) Scuderia Toro Rosso 18 Laps completedWorld championship standings after German grand prix:Drivers: 1 Jenson Button (GB) Brawn GP 68pts, 2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 47, 3 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 45.5, 4 Rubens Barrichello (Br) Brawn GP 44, 5 Felipe Massa (Br) Ferrari 22, 6 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 21.5, 7 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 20.5, 8 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 13, 9 Fernando Alonso (Sp) Renault 13, 10 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 10, 11 Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren 9, 12 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 6, 13 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 5, 14 Sébastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 3, 15 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 2, 16 Sébastien Bourdais (Fr) Scuderia Toro Rosso 2, 17 Giancarlo Fisichella (It) Force India 0, 18 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 0, 19 Nelson Piquet Jr (Br) Renault 0, 20 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 0Manufacturers: 1 Brawn GP 112pts, 2 Red Bull 92.5, 3 Toyota 34.5, 4 Ferrari 32, 5 Williams 20.5, 6 McLaren 14, 7 Renault 13, 8 BMW Sauber 8, 9 Scuderia Toro Rosso 5, 10 Force India 0Formula OneRed BullBrawnMcLarenFerrariJenson ButtonSebastian VettelLewis HamiltonForce IndiaMotor sportguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Joy for Mark Webber in qualifying

• Webber scores first pole of career• Resurgent Hamilton will start fifthThe old 14-mile long Nürburgring Nordschleife long ago entered the motor racing history books as the stuff of legends, so when, in 1984, the sanitised new, current circuit was opened many hard-liners were left simply aghast that the old track's memory was being sullied by its replacement with such a sterile facility.Yet somehow this weekend, the ascetic new Nürburgring seemed strangely in tune with the tortured times of the sport. In contemporary Formula One, money talks even more than driving genius or engineering excellence, but the 2009 German Grand Prix might yet be remembered as the day the sport's commercial madness was laid to rest and the foundations were put down for a sane new future.A glance down the timing sheets offered little insight into the real story. At the end of a qualifying session rendered tantalisingly unpredictable by a succession of intermittent rain showers, Mark Webber stormed his Red Bull-Renault to the first pole position of his 128-race career, edging out the Brawn-Mercedes duo, Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button, while local star Sebastian Vettel could manage only fourth ahead of the resurgent McLaren-Mercedes pair, Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen.Webber, a huge paddock favourite, could hardly contain his delight. "This is a very special day for me," said the 32-year-old. "I've been close to getting pole a few times in the past. It was very, very chaotic and to deliver the lap time when it absolutely counted was very important to me."We have been quick all weekend and I hope that it can be my first win tomorrow. Obviously these guys [Barrichello and Button] have had a very strong season and will push us, but I'm looking forward to a fight. I'm certainly up for trying to take the first win of my career."As for Button, third place was perhaps a little less than the world championship leader had been hoping for, but in terms of the strategic imperative to keep the upper hand over championship rival Vettel, he was certainly satisfied."Just getting into the final qualifying session was an achievement today," he said. "It was a pretty eventful hour and the second stint in particular was madness, but it was good fun. I thought it was too wet for slicks, but Rubens made it work and we were able to switch tyres with just enough time to make my own timed lap count."McLaren came into the weekend feeling that at last there was light at the end of the tunnel as far as the development of their troublesome MP4-24 was concerned. Hamilton's car was fitted with a new front wing and revised upper bodywork for Friday free practice, and a second new front wing was fitted to Kovalainen's car on Friday evening. In the end, the reigning world champion counted himself satisfied to have made it into the top 10."If it stays dry tomorrow, then we will definitely be in a good position," said Hamilton, "and we can shoot for the podium. We could even fight the Red Bulls. I think it will probably be wet, though. For Heikki and I to be in the top 10, that's all down to the work done back at the factory. It has made a huge difference."Yet that most pressing of agendas was being hammered out behind the smoked-glass windows of the lavish team motorhomes that lined the paddock. At the end of a week that had seen a rash of provocative exchanges between Max Mosley, the FIA president, and the eight-strong membership of the Formula One Teams' Association, over the future of the F1 world championship, it emerged that there had been a seismic shift in the balance of power within the motor racing community.Having started the weekend as the masters of their high-octane universe, Bernie Ecclestone and Mosley were reduced to the role of bit-part players as the realisation dawned that the sport's most pressing priority was servicing the $2.8bn bond that had been launched in 2007 by investors CVC Capital Partners to buy a stake in Ecclestone's F1 business.The only source of income available to service this debt is the future race and TV fees generated by the competing teams – and those teams had made it clear they had no intention of sticking around to be dictated to by an FIA under Mosley's stewardship. By this morning it was clear that time had run out for Mosley when Ari Vatanen, the 1981 world rally champion and a former member of the European parliament, arrived in the paddock to be greeted by a staged photocall shaking hands with Ecclestone.Of course, it is still possible that Mosley, or his approved nominee, the former Ferrari team principal Jean Todt, will offer themselves as candidates for the FIA presidential election in October. But Ecclestone's tacit endorsement of Vatanen – who proclaimed himself intent on restoring the governing body's somewhat tarnished reputation – renders this an unlikely dawn.Formula 1 has for too long been a cash cow milked dry by vested interests. If it is to survive and prosper, it needs a little breathing space in which to catch its breath.Formula OneRed BullLewis HamiltonJenson ButtonBrawnMcLarenMotor sportguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Hamilton storms to pole for Italy GP

• Adrian Sutil second and Kimi Raikkonen third• Jenson Button to start in sixth placeLewis Hamilton stormed to the 15th pole position of his career ahead of tomorrow's Italian grand prix. The reigning world champion saved it until the final moment as he was the last to cross the line in a hotly contested final ten-minute showdown, deposing Force India's Adrian Sutil from top spot.There was a possibility Hamilton could be penalised, though, as he appeared to impede Toro Rosso's Sebastien Buemi late on in the initial 20-minute Q1. However, given Buemi was never going to make it into the next session, it was hard to imagine the stewards penalising Hamilton.After claiming his second pole position of the year, and pipping close friend Sutil, Hamilton said: "It was a very close qualifying session, and I'm very happy to see Adrian up here. Since Formula Three it's been a long time since we've been in a press conference together, and on the front row. But it was such a great feeling to put a great lap together."People need to understand, you have one shot at it at the end, so to pull it off is amazing. I don't think we anticipated being just as quick as we are this weekend, so it's a bonus to everyone in the team."Behind another unusual front row, given Sutil's performance, Kimi Raikkonen again gave Ferrari something to cheer. He will start third, with the 2007 world champion joined on the second row by his fellow Finn, McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen.The Brawns, clearly back in form after their recent struggles, are on the third row, with Rubens Barrichello starting fifth and Jenson Button sixth, the Brazilian out-qualifying the Briton for the third successive race.On his debut for Force India, Tonio Liuzzi gave the team another historic moment as he will start seventh, the first time they have managed to get both cars into the top 10. Renault's Fernando Alonso starts eighth, followed by the Red Bulls of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, their title hopes fading further.BMW Sauber suffered a wretched Q2 as both Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld retired, with engine trouble. Kubica will start 13th and Heidfeld 15th, with the man to split them being Giancarlo Fisichella on his debut for Ferrari. The 36-year-old has clearly struggled to adapt to the car in the wake of his move from Force India nine days ago, notably crashing it this morning in final practice.Toyota's Jarno Trulli will start from 11th, with Romain Grosjean a semi-respectable 12th for Renault bearing in mind his car has KERS on board this weekend.Williams' fears regarding this circuit were certainly realised as both Kazuki Nakajima and Nico Rosberg failed to make it out of Q1. For Rosberg, who had qualified in the top 10 in 11 of the previous 12 races this season, the 24-year-old will start from his lowest position of the year in 18th, one place behind Nakajima.Toyota's Timo Glock was another unable to find the downforce and power required for Monza as he starts 16th, with the Toro Rossos bringing up the rear. Buemi will line up 19th, with Jaime Alguersuari 20th, the young Spaniard's five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change after final practice not counting for anything on this occasion.Positions after qualifying1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren 1min 24.066secs, 2 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:24.261, 3 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:24.523, 4 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 1:24.845, 5 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 1:25.015, 6 Jenson Button (Gbr) Brawn GP 1:25.030, 7 Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita) Force India 1:25.043, 8 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:25.072, 9 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1:25.180, 10 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:25.314, 11 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:23.611, 12 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Renault 1:23.728, 13 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:23.866, 14 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Ferrari 1:23.901, 15 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:24.275, 16 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:24.036, 17 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:24.074, 18 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:24.121, 19 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:24.220, 20 Jaime Alguersuari (Spa) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:24.951Formula OneMotor sportLewis Hamiltonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Fernando Alonso: 'With all the fights, this may be F1's worst year ever'

You have to love Fernando Alonso. Apart from Mark Webber, the 27-year-old Spaniard is the only star in Formula One who tells it like it is. He shoots straight from the hip, and his aim devastates political correctness. He believes that the endless politicking is killing the sport, and he says so.

Lewis Hamilton's first pole of 2009

• Hamilton follows up win in Hungary with pole in Valencia• Heikki Kovalainen will start second in McLaren one-twoLewis Hamilton claimed his first pole position of the season as McLaren locked out the front row for tomorrow's European grand prix in Valencia.The reigning world champion, fresh from winning his first race of the season last time out in Hungary, posted a time of one minute 39.498 seconds to beat Heikki Kovalainen to top spot by less than a tenth of a second."Clearly, we have very, very good pace this weekend," said Hamilton. "We thought we would be competitive, but I don't think we thought we'd be on the front row. We've not had a one-two qualifying experience for quite a long time, so it's great to be here."Despite the turnaround in McLaren's fortunes, Hamilton insists there is no question of him getting carried away. "For sure, going into tomorrow we stand in the best position for a podium, but it all depends of strategy and how the start and the race goes."Brawn GP's Rubens Barrichello will start behind Hamilton and Kovalainen in third, with Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel fourth and championship leader Jenson Button fifth. Home favourite Fernando Alonso will be disappointed with eighth place for Renault.Elsewhere, Adrian Sutil's rapid practice pace failed to convert into anything more than 12th on the grid for Force India, Renault debutant Romain Grosjean had to settle for 14th and Felipe Massa's stand-in Luca Badoer suffered a torrid return to Formula One. Back behind the wheel of a grand prix car for the first time in a decade, the 38-year-old Ferrari test driver qualified last on the grid."I was hoping for better, but that more or less was the range," the Italian said. "We were expecting this. One year without driving and a new track, what could I do? This race is a test. I have to be better in the next race."Positions after qualifying:1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren 1min 39.498secs, 2 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 1:39.532, 3 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 1:39.563, 4 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1:39.789, 5 Jenson Button (Gbr) Brawn GP 1:39.821, 6 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:40.144, 7 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:40.185, 8 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:40.236, 9 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:40.239, 10 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:40.512, 11 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:38.826, 12 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:38.846, 13 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:38.991, 14 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Renault 1:39.040, 15 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:39.514, 16 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India 1:39.531, 17 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:39.795, 18 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:39.807, 19 Jaime Alguersuari (Spa) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:39.925, 20 Luca Badoer (Ita) Ferrari 1:41.413Formula OneLewis HamiltonMcLarenMotor sportguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Jenson Button suffers qualifying blow

• Button to start from a season-low 14th, Lewis Hamilton 12th• Fisichella gives Force India their first Formula One poleJenson Button's Formula One world title hopes suffered a crushing blow in a bizarre qualifying session for tomorrow's Belgian grand prix. For the first time this year the championship leader failed to make it into the top-10 shootout, with the 29-year-old down in a season-low 14th.In a remarkable hour at the Spa circuit, Giancarlo Fisichella - the man being touted to replace the hapless Luca Badoer at Ferrari - gave Force India their first F1 pole, although it remains to be seen how much fuel is in the car. It is the veteran Italian's fourth pole of his career, and his first since Malaysia in 2006, with Toyota's Jarno Trulli second, BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld third and Button's Brawn GP team-mate Rubens Barrichello fourth.Fisichella, whose previous best grid slot this year was 13th, was unable to explain his performance. "Pole position is amazing, fantastic," remarked the 36-year-old. "I'm so happy and thanks to the team who have done a great job. It's a remarkable result. I've shown what I can do. This is one of my favourite circuits, but I didn't expect to be on pole, in particular considering the budget of our team."Button offered a simple explanation for his poor display, conceding he "wasn't fast enough." He added: "It is pretty disastrous for tomorrow really. It's going to make it very difficult. I didn't have any pace on the soft tyres and every time I hit the brakes, the rear would move. I did not have any confidence in the rear end. It's strange to be four or five tenths [of a second] off Rubens. Our cars are different, but they are not that different."The 15-minute middle session was not just a disaster for Button, but also for Lewis Hamilton. The reigning world champion was unable to build on his victory in Hungary and pole at the European grand prix last weekend, qualifying down in 12th. His McLaren struggled in the twisty middle section of the track, whilst his team-mate Heikki Kovalainen fared worse and will start 15th, his second worst qualifying display this season. Renault's Fernando Alonso was another casualty in Q2 and was only 13th fastest.Luca Badoer, meanwhile, could be out of a job following tomorrow's race in the wake of another poor performance. The 38-year-old replacement for the recuperating Felipe Massa will again start at the back of the grid, as he did last weekend on his Ferrari debut in Valencia. Badoer ended the opening 20-minute Q1 by breaking the rear suspension of his car in careering backwards into a tyre wall after passing Sebastian Vettel on the approach to Les Combes. Renault's Romain Grosjean also struggled on his second outing, coming only one place better than Badoer in 19th.Leading grid positions after qualifying1 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India 1min 46.308secs, 2 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:46.395, 3 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:46.500, 4 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 1:46.513, 5 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:46.586, 6 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:46.633, 7 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:46.677, 8 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1:46.761, 9 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:46.788, 10 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:47.362, 11 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:45.119, 12 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren 1:45.122, 13 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:45.136, 14 Jenson Button (Gbr) Brawn GP 1:45.251, 15 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 1:45.259, 16 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:45.951, 17 Jaime Alguersuari (Spa) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:46.032, 18 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:46.307, 19 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Renault 1:46.359, 20 Luca Badoer (Ita) Ferrari 1:46.957Formula OneMotor sportJenson ButtonBrawnForce Indiaguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds