Vettel grabs Silverstone pole

• Vettel sets fastest time despite heavy fuel load• Button will start from sixth after difficult sessionAs often happens at a favourite's home race, Jenson Button experienced his worst qualifying performance of the season yesterday when he could do no better than claim sixth on the grid for today's British grand prix, over half a second slower than the pole position Red Bull of his most feared rival, Sebastian Vettel. Fickle and cool summer weather made life difficult for the Brawn driver as he struggled to get heat into his tyres, the frustration intensifying when it was his team-mate, Rubens Barrichello, who managed to split the Red Bull Racing team and prevent them from dominating the front row."I really struggled; there was just no grip, especially at the end of the lap," said Button. "Compared to Rubens, I was losing a lot of time because I was skating around. It's been that way all weekend. Rubens has always been very quick at Silverstone but, even so, I was surprised I couldn't get more out of the car. It's quite different to what I had [at the last race] in Turkey and I don't know why. We knew that the Red Bulls would be very quick here but, compared to Rubens, who's in the same car as me, I just wasn't quick."Button's English reserve, barely helped by a 26-point lead in the championship, was in contrast to Mark Webber's obvious and understandable annoyance over the behaviour of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen during Webber's final lap, one which he clearly intended to be good enough for pole during his increasingly intense in-house battle with Vettel. Raikkonen, on a slowing-down lap, did not move off the racing line on the 190-mph approach to Stowe Corner, forcing Webber to take a tight line through the 110-mph right-hand bend. Having been within 0.02 seconds of Vettel's time at the end of the first sector of the lap, Raikkonen had cost Webber four-tenths of a second."I don't know if Kimi was drinking vodka or dreaming or whatever," fumed the Australian. "He wasn't where he should have been. He was totally asleep on the racing line and basically didn't care. It's so competitive these days that every lap needs to be perfect. I had to take a tight line into Stowe – and that was it. I was happy with every lap except that one. We've made changes to the car and it's definitely helped us. It's the quickest the car has been all year."Vettel joined Webber by paying tribute to the work put in at the team's headquarters in nearby Milton Keynes as Red Bull attempted to close the performance gap on Brawn. "It's been a fantastic weekend so far," said Vettel. "The team has done an incredible amount of work and there has not been a single problem with the new parts. Everything seems to work. My last lap was close to perfect but, even so, I was surprised how quick I was."Vettel's surprise was explained by the news that his car was carrying two more laps of fuel compared to his team-mate, a tactic that should have given Webber pole. The published weights further underlined Button's struggle since both Brawns had even less fuel than the Red Bulls, the figures also explaining an unexpected sixth on the grid for Kazuki Nakajima's Williams, the lightest car in the field."Sixty laps is a long way," said Vettel. "It's a long race which will be tough on the driver and the car. We are here to fight; we want to win and beat the Brawns and I think we've done the best possible job so far. I have a fantastic car and it's good that Jenson is not sitting near us on the grid. But we know Brawn can be extremely competitive and Jenson can come back, even starting from sixth."If Button's progress had slipped back a gear, the metaphorical handbrake appeared to be jammed on Lewis Hamilton's McLaren-Mercedes as the winner of last year's race set the 19th fastest time, the worst qualifying performance of his career. Hamilton's last lap was compromised when the first part of qualifying was stopped prematurely thanks to Adrian Sutil having a heavy accident. Brake trouble sent the Force India into the barrier and the German driver was fortunate to escape unhurt."I did the best I could but we're just slow," said Hamilton. "The car is terrible to drive. There's not much more I can do with it. The red flag didn't make much difference. There wasn't much more to come. The fans have given incredible support and this means everything to me. I'm pushing as hard as I can to give them a result. But it's difficult, especially starting from the back of the grid. You have to take the rough with the smooth. I just hope Jenson gets the job done for the home country."The row between the Formula One Teams Association (Fota) and the governing body (FIA) continued to simmer in the background after Friday's frenetic activity following the decision by Fota to run a rival championship in 2010.Although no longer at the track, Max Mosley, president of the FIA, left his unmistakable calling card in the form of an interview broadcast by the BBC in which he referred to some of the Fota team as "loonies". Adopting more presidential language, Mosley went on to say: "It is not greed, it is more about power. There are one or two individuals... well there is one individual who fancies himself as the Bernie [Ecclestone]. Whether he could do the job or not I don't know." When pressed further, Mosley named Flavio Briatore, team principal at Renault.Many inside and outside Fota believe Briatore would be more than capable of putting together the commercial deals necessary for a breakaway series to survive. Briatore not only has the acumen and flair for the job but the former head of marketing at Benetton is also the only boss not playing a hands-on role in running his team. Fota has already received initial approaches from several television companies and claims it only needs to raise 37 per cent of Formula One's present total revenue in order to equal the sums the teams receive now: a reference to the high figures retained by Ecclestone's organisation, one of Fota's many causes of dissatisfaction with the present administration.At least the sport will be spared the angst for 90 minutes this afternoon. Whether there is a British winner to appease the sell-out 90,000 crowd is another matter.Formula oneMotor sportJenson ButtonBrawnRed BullLewis Hamiltonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Vettel grabs Silverstone pole

• Button sixth while team-mate Barrichello starts second • Hamilton starts from the back of the grid in 19th placeSebastian Vettel will start on pole position for tomorrow's British grand prix after a blistering performance in qualifying, leaving championship leader Jenson Button down in sixth.Button's closest rival, Brawn GP team-mate Rubens Barrichello, finished second fastest nearly four tenths of a second behind Vettel. Mark Webber narrowly missed out on making it an all-Red Bull Racing front row by 0.012secs.German driver Vettel was thrilled after clinching the fourth pole of his career, and the second in a row. "It's been a fantastic weekend so far from beginning to end," he said. "All the parts we have brought here seem to be working well, so we have made a good step forward."But when it comes to qualifying there is tension there, you try to do your best and you try to get a good feeling. In Q3 I had the lap of the weekend. From beginning to end it was very close to being perfect."I brought the lap to the chequered flag, and I was surprised by how quick I was at that stage, yet it was enough to get pole."Barrichello, who out-qualified Button for only the second time in eight races this season, was delighted to finish ahead of his Brawn GP team-mate. "I'm very pleased with this. We've found a good balance on a circuit that has always been quite good for me," he said. "I'm in the middle of them [the Red Bulls], it's going to be hard to beat them, but that's what I'm here for."Red Bull's Webber was left spitting feathers at being held up by Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen on his final run. "I would have liked a slightly cleaner run on my last Q3 lap, but Kimi ... I don't know, he'd been drinking some vodka or dreaming or something," he said. "I don't know what the hell he was doing. He should have been on the right, but he was on the racing line."He basically didn't care, so that wrecked my run. Anyway, you do not want to listen to a shopping list of excuses. I'd have liked to have got more out of the car on the last lap, but it wasn't the case, we're still third, and congratulations to Seb. He did a good job."World champion Lewis Hamilton, who thrilled his fans a year ago with a storming win in wet conditions, qualified in a career low 19th as his wretched season continued.Starting positions1 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1min 19.509secs, 2 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 1:19.856, 3 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:19.868, 4 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:20.091, 5 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:20.216, 6 Jenson Button (Gbr) Brawn GP 1:20.289, 7 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:20.361, 8 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:20.490, 9 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:20.715, 10 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 1:20.741, 11 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 1:18.927, 12 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:19.308, 13 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 1:19.353, 14 Nelson Piquet Jr (Bra) Renault 1:19.392, 15 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:19.448, 16 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India 1:19.802, 17 Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:19.898, 18 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 1:19.909, 19 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) McLaren 1:19.917, 20 Sebastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:20.236Formula oneJenson ButtonLewis HamiltonMcLarenRed BullMotor sportguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

British grand prix – live!

Join Gemma for all the action. Any insights, questions or comments can be e-mailed hereLap 17: Raikkonen (P10) has leap-frogged Nakajima (P11) in those stops. Hamilton - being held up by the slower Kubica - tells his engineer he cannot pass as he has no grip.Lap 16: Kazuki 'I'm running on a wisp of fuel' Nakajima is the first to pit. He stays on the harder tyre. Vettel does another fastest lap. Button is now 27.4 seconds adrift of the leader. Raikkonen also pits.Lap 12: Not much drama to report I'm afraid folks. Here's the order: Vettel, Barrichello, Webber, Nakajima (I know!), Raikkonen, Rosberg, Trulli, Button, Massa, Glock, Fisichella (go on my son), Heidfeld, Alonso, Kubica, Hamilton, Piquet, Bourdais, Buemi, Kovalainen and Sutil.Lap 11: My carefully-positioned boyfriend... erm, sorry, I mean track-side mole... is embedded at Club. But all he has to report is that there are plenty of chips being consumed (gernerous servings too, apparently). And it's a bit chilly.Lap 10: Vettel's lead now 10 seconds and he's just posted another fastest lap. Webber maintains his close pursuit of Barrichello but has not thrown any moves.Lap nine: Hamilton's engineers have told him he must get past Kubica (P14). But the Brit said yesterday that his car is so poor the only way to drive it is slowly.Lap eight: Heidfeld is running well in 12th, having started 15th, despite his poorly nose (on the car, you understand).Lap seven: Vettel's lead is over 7 seconds now, but there's only eight tenths between Barrichello and Webber. Button still in eighth - he's over 15 seconds shy of the race leader now.Lap five: Webber is six seconds behind his team-mate in third. He'll need to get past Barrichello if he wants to hunt him down. Kubica has taken 14th from Hamilton - looks like happened when Alonso (in P13) ran wide and held up Hamilton, allowing the BMW through.Lap four: Over the radio we can hear Heidfeld's engineer telling him 'box! box!' (which means pit, not slam another driver in the face) for a new nose. But the militant German says 'nein'. He'll wait until the first stop. Vettel's lead now 4.4sec.Lap three: Vettel is storming - he made almost a second on Barrichello in that lap. Kovalainen wins the prize for worst start: he lined up in 13th and he's back in 19th.Lap two: Vettel's lead is already 2.5seconds, he's the fastest car on track. Hamilton is up to 14th already - he can see a points finish in his sights. Button has re-passed Massa for eighth.Lap one: Trulli also dropped down the order at the start. The Ferraris both got flyers - Massa looked fantastic surging past Button. The order in the top ten after the first tour: Vettel, Barrichello, Webber, Nakajima, Raikkonen, Rosberg, Trulli, Massa, Button and Glock.The start: Vettel good start, keeps ahead of Barrichello and Webber. Button has dropped down to eighth.Most of the frontrunners - apart from the Williams cars - are starting on the softer option tyres. We're about to get underway...Enough politics. We're counting down to the start of the GP now. It looks a little breezy at the former airfield. Flavio Briatore has told the BBC's Martin Brundle that he "loves" Bernie Ecclestone. Victoria Pendleton "cannot believe" that she's been standing on the Formula One grid. And Lewis Hamilton is casting round for a pair of binoculars so he can get a glimpse of the front of the pack...More breaking news: The Big Row has given Donington Park a 'get out of jail free' card. Apparently, if the planned breakaway goes ahead, the circuit bosses can pull out of their contract to host the GP. Which would help them out of any hole, were they not to achieve the funding necessary to bring the circuit up to scratch, wouldn't it?I think the news editor will pull out my computer's power cable if I don't mention The Big Row. The latest news: in a quote that will leave the City's finest barristers weeping into their copies of the Sunday Times this morning, Max Mosley has said that a resolution is imminent. "I think we would rather talk than litigate," he said. "We are very, very close as far as the facts are concerned. It's just if the teams want to sit down and iron out the last few difficulties." So are we close to a resolution then? Let's hope so: my fingernails are already bitten to the quick and I can handle any more last-minute re-writes. But what do you care about my bleeding hands - email me with your thoughts.Elsewhere on the grid, the Williams pair were light-fuelled and running highly. But the big story had to be Lewis Hamilton's dire 19th position. He wasn't helped by the red flags coming out owing to Adrian Sutil's heafty shunt, but the reigning champion later claimed he had little more to come from his curtailed flying lap. At least it'll be fun to watch him try and work his way up the field. Funny, though, how we've been uttering that line for the past few races. But we absolutely won't say 'what a difference a year makes'. That would be too cliched. Ooops.So Vettel, the only man other than Jenson to have won a grand prix this season, sits on pole. And what a lap it was. Information on the fuel loads released last night showed that the young German's car was carrying two more laps of fuel compared to team-mate Webber - with the Brawn GP drivers' cars carrying less than both the Red Bulls. So you'd have to fancy that the energy drink-powered cars have the edge, right? Both drivers praised recent technical developments made by the Milton Keynes-based squad, while Button could only whinge about his skitterish Brawn.1. Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull-Renault2. Rubens Barrichello, Brawn-Mercedes3. Mark Webber, Red Bull-Renault4. Jarno Trulli, Toyota5. Kazuki Nakajima, Williams-Toyota6. Jenson Button, Brawn-Mercedes7. Nico Rosberg, Williams-Toyota8. Timo Glock, Toyota9. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari10. Fernando Alonso, Renault11. Felipe Massa, Ferrari12. Robert Kubica, BMW-Sauber13. Heikki Kovalainen, McLaren-Mercedes14. Nelson Piquet, Renault15. Nick Heidfeld, BMW-Sauber16. Giancarlo Fisichella, Force India-Mercedes17. Sebastien Bourdais, Toro Rosso-Ferrari18. Adrian Sutil, Force India-Mercedes19. Lewis Hamilton, McLaren-Mercedes20. Sebastien Buemi, Toro Rosso-FerrariBut let's say 'pah!' to those anoraks at the circuit anyway - they were smugly expecting to watch hero-de-jour Jenson Button triumph, weren't they? Not so confident now though. Sixth on the grid? What's all that about we demanded after yesterday's qualifying session. No grip, according to Sir Jenson of Frome. Skating around like a duckling on an icy pond, apparently. Ole Button has written off his chances of victory already, so what can we expect from today's race? Let's remind ourselves of the grid...Well hello. So you're not one of the 90,000 people who've made the pilgrimage to Silverstone for it's last-ever Formula One grand prix* (*possibly) then? Never mind. I was going to say that it'll probably rain and you're better off tucked up on your sofa watching the action with a mug of tea and a packet of Hob Nobs. But I have to report that when I left home this morning - the Briggs abode being close enough to the track that the fat cats' helicopters were interfering with my television signal as I tried to watch Roary the Racing Car early this morning - the skies were a beautiful blue and not a drop of moisture threatened my 'do.Formula oneMotor sportBrawnToyotaFerrariToro RossoRed BullForce IndiaRenaultSauberWilliamsMcLarenLewis HamiltonJenson Buttonguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Vettel wins British grand prix

• Sebastian Vettel's second win of the season• Jenson Button finishes in sixth after poor startSebastian Vettel has won the British grand prix for his second race win of the season, with Mark Webber behind him for a Red Bull one-two, and Rubens Barricchello in third. The world championship leader Jenson Button started and finished in sixth, but he still holds a healthy 23-point lead from Barrichello, who has 41 points. Vettel's win keeps him in third place, now two points behind Barrichello.It was the final FIA grand prix to be staged at Silverstone, although the current stand-off between the Formula One controllers and the teams means the track could yet be called into action as part of a rebel series next year. Vettel won from pole and made a strong start, unlike two weeks ago in Turkey when an early error allowed Button into first place, a position he did not relinquish for the rest of the race. In fact it was Button who started poorly this time, boxed in and immediately slipping three places to ninth.Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso overtook each other to renew their old rivalry, but unlike the 2007 championship, the two were well down the field. Hamilton eventually finished in 16th position.2009 British grand prix results1 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 1hr 22mins 49.328secs2 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 1:23:04.5163 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 1:23:30.4834 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 1:23:34.3715 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 1:23:35.2436 Jenson Button (GB) Brawn GP 1:23:35.6137 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:23:57.6358 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:23:58.9509 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 1:23:59.15110 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India 1:24:00.85011 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 1:24:03.35112 Nelson Piquet Jr (Bra) Renault at 1 Lap13 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber at 1 Lap14 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault at 1 Lap15 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber at 1 Lap16 Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren at 1 Lap17 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India at 1 Lap18 Sébastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso at 1 LapNot Classified: 19 Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Scuderia Toro Rosso 37 Laps completed, 20 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 36 Laps completedWorld championship standingsDrivers: 1 Jenson Button (GB) Brawn GP 64pts, 2 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Brawn GP 41, 3 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 39, 4 Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 35.5, 5 Jarno Trulli (Ita) Toyota 21.5, 6 Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 16, 7 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Williams 15.5, 8 Timo Glock (Ger) Toyota 13, 9 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault 11, 10 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 10, 11 Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren 9, 12 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 6, 13 Heikki Kovalainen (Fin) McLaren 4, 14 Sébastien Buemi (Swi) Scuderia Toro Rosso 3, 15 Robert Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 2, 16 Sebastien Bourdais (Fra) Scuderia Toro Rosso 2, 17 Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Force India 0, 18 Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 0, 19 Nelson Piquet Jr (Bra) Renault 0, 20 Kazuki Nakajima (Jpn) Williams 0Manufacturers: 1 Brawn GP 105, 2 Red Bull 74.5, 3 Toyota 34.5, 4 Ferrari 26, 5 Williams 15.5, 6 McLaren 13, 7 Renault 11, 8 BMW Sauber 8, 9 Scuderia Toro Rosso 5, 10 Force India 0Formula oneRed BullJenson ButtonBrawnFerrariMcLarenRenaultForce IndiaSauberToyotaWilliamsToro RossoLewis HamiltonMotor sportguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

Raikkonen to contest another rally

Moving from gravel to asphalt this time Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen is set to contest yet another professional rally, his third of the year...  

Ferrari dismiss tabloid rumours

Pressure on Ferrari to perform in Spain Rumours in the Barcelona paddock indicate that tension between Kimi Raikkonen and the Ferrari management is growing...