Lewis Hamilton wins Singapore GP

• Hamilton puts in perfect performance to take second win of year• Button steals a march on Barrichello to gain a valuable pointLewis Hamilton scored his second victory of the season at the Singapore grand prix as Jenson Button extended his title lead by one point, to 15, despite a poor qualifying position.McLaren's Hamilton put in a perfect performance to lead home the Toyota of Timo Glock, the German equalling his best-ever finish. Meanwhile Renault's Fernando Alonso gave his team something to cheer about at the circuit that has caused their recent woes by claiming third place.Button followed Sebastian Vettel home, having overhauled his Brawn team-mate Rubens Barrichello at the Briton's last stop, to take fifth. It means he has extended his championship lead by one point with three races remaining as Barrichello finished sixth ahead of Heikki Kovalainen. Robert Kubica picked up the final points position after a late-race battle for eighth, holding off Kazuki Nakajima and Kimi Raikkonen.The 11th-placed finisher Nico Rosberg had been an early contender but his chances of repeating last year's podium finish in Singapore were dashed when the Williams driver crossed the white line while leaving the pits after his first stop. Rosberg had made an excellent start to pass Vettel on the opening lap but was forced down the order thanks to a drive-through penalty.The situation seemed to play into the hands of Vettel, who looked set to challenge Hamilton for the lead, but the Red Bull driver was himself given a drive-through penalty for speeding in the pitlane. He also damaged his car by running wide over a kerb but recovered to finish the race in fourth place, leaving him 25 points behind Button.Mark Webber, who went into the race with slim title hopes, crashed out in the closing stages through brake trouble. The accident led several teams to bring drivers, including Hamilton and Barrichello, into the pits early in case of a safety car period, although this did not transpire.This played into Button's hands as the Brawn driver was able to stay out for a long middle stint and make up ground while his rivals struggled with heavier cars. It had seemed as though Button might challenge Vettel for fourth but the Brawn driver was told to hold back and protect his position."It was a good day for us," said Button. "I was happy to get Kazuki [Nakajima] off the line; that was key for me. I'm happy to get fifth and pull a point on Rubens. I go to Japan very positive for the next race."Lewis HamiltonJenson ButtonMcLarenBrawnFormula OneMotor sportGemma Briggsguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Renault admits fixing Singapore GP

• Renault will not dispute allegations of deliberate crash• Team remains committed to Formula One until 2012Flavio Briatore and Pat Symonds have stepped down from their posts after Renault decided not to dispute allegations that the team ordered former driver Nelson Piquet Junior to crash deliberately at last year's Singapore grand prix.The sensational move comes ahead of Renault's appearance before the governing FIA to explain their role in the crash. There has been intense speculation about the role of Briatore and Symonds in the incident, which saw Piquet's Renault team-mate Fernando Alonso benefit from the deployment of a safety car, after which he went on to win the race.The Renault team itself is committed to remain in Formula One at least until 2012, but there is nothing preventing the manufacturer and parent company from seeking a buyer for the outfit.The CEO and President of Renault Carlos Ghosn earlier told L'Equipe that the parent company would not react "in hot blood" to the allegations that were made against the Formula One team. "Above all we don't want to make a premature judgment one way or the other," he said.Yesterday a transcript of the radio conversations between team engineers and the driver was published, revealing Briatore's outburst about Piquet in the immediate aftermath of the Singapore crash. He swore repeatedly and proclaimed Piquet was "not a driver".Despite this latest twist in the affair, the extraordinary meeting of the World Motor Sport Council scheduled for Monday at the FIA's headquarters in Paris will still go ahead. The WMSC may yet choose to impose severe sanctions on the team now they have chosen not to launch a defence.The FIA charged Renault with "conspiring with its driver, Nelson Piquet Jnr, to cause a deliberate crash at the 2008 Singapore grand prix with the aim of causing the deployment of the safety car to the advantage of its other driver, Fernando Alonso."Alonso went on to take the chequered flag at Formula One's first night race, his first victory for two years, and at a time when Renault were considering quitting the sport. The French manufacturer will almost certainly plead for clemency from the FIA as they will claim the actions of two men should not affect the employment of nearly 700 other staff within the team. The FIA have the power to exclude Renault from the championship.RenaultFormula OneMotor sportJeremy Campbellguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Live - Singapore Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton starts on pole for the Singapore Grand Prix, with Brawn's title rivals Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello set to battle from the middle of the grid.

Formula One preview: Singapore Grand Prix

The Singapore Grand Prix is completely different from the past couple of Formula One race venues. After races at two classic F1 tracks - Spa (Belgium) and Monza (Italy) - the teams move to the streets of Singapore to race under the lights.

Red Bull’s Vettel fastest heading into Singapore GP

Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel set the fastest practice time Friday ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, leaving series leader Brawn's Jenson Button in the fifth fastest time.

Lewis Hamilton on pole in Singapore

• Hamilton quickest ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Nico Rosberg• Button qualifies 12th two places behind Rubens BarrichelloLewis Hamilton secured pole for the Singapore grand prix but there was disappointment for championship leader, Jenson Button, whose world title hopes were dealt a blow by qualifying in 12th place on the grid.Hamilton, whose engineers worked through the night to fit a new chassis for his McLaren, impressed in practice and took that form into qualifying as he clocked a time of 1min 47.891sec in Q3 at the Marina Bay street circuit.In contrast, Button had struggled in practice after his Brawn car had been switched to the same set-up as team-mate Rubens Barrichello. Though they reverted it to yesterday's settings, the 29-year-old failed to threaten, with Sebastian Vettel's Red Bull taking second and the Williams of Nico Rosberg third.Barrichello, who will be looking to cut into Button's 14-point lead tomorrow, was fifth fastest before crashing with 26 seconds of qualifying remaining but will start from 10th on the grid tomorrow after being hit with a five-place grid penalty for changing his gearbox prior to the session.Race standings1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren 1min 47.891secs, 2 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1:48.204, 3 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:48.348, 4 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:48.722, 5 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 1:48.828, 6 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:49.054, 7 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:49.180, 8 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:49.307, 9 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:49.514, 10 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 1:49.778, 11 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:47.013, 12 Jenson Button (Gbr) Brawn GP 1:47.141, 13 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:47.177, 14 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:47.369, 15 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:47.413, 16 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:48.231, 17 Jaime Alguersuari (Spa) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:48.340, 18 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Ferrari 1:48.350, 19 Romain Grosjean (Fra) Renault 1:48.544, 20 Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita) Force India 1:48.792Note: Rubens Barrichello will start the race in 10th position following a five place penalty for a gearbox replacement.Formula OneLewis HamiltonJenson ButtonMcLarenBrawnMotor sportguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds