Hamilton beats Rosberg to pole in Brazil

SAO PAULO - Lewis Hamilton stormed to pole position at the Brazilian Grand Prix on Saturday with Mercedes team mate and title rival Nico Rosberg joining the triple Formula One world champion on the front row.

On a damp and overcast Sao Paulo afternoon, it was the 60th pole of the Briton's career, eight short of Michael Schumacher's record, and his first in Brazil since 2012 when he was at McLaren.

With his title on the line, it was also one of Hamilton's most important in a roller-coaster season marked by mechanical setbacks.

Rosberg will take his first championship if he wins Sunday's penultimate race of the season but Hamilton, 19 points adrift, showed he will do all he can to take the fight down to the wire in Abu Dhabi with another dominant qualifying display.

"This is the best I could have hoped for really coming into Brazil," said Hamilton who has never won at the bowl-like anti-clockwise Interlagos circuit. "It's always a track that I struggled at."

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen qualified third with Red Bull's Max Verstappen joining the 2007 world champion on the second row of the grid.

Ferrari and Red Bull also shared the third row with Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo qualifying fifth and sixth ahead of a race that could well be wet, with showers threatened.

Hamilton, fastest in all three phases of qualifying, was already lapping quicker than Rosberg's 2015 pole position time of 1:11.282 in the second session and again lit up the timing screens in the final shootout with a best lap of 1:10.736.

The pole was a record 19th in 20 races this season for Mercedes.

Rosberg, winner from pole in Brazil for the past two seasons, was quicker than Hamilton at the first split on his final lap but then faded to finish with a best of 1:10.838.

"It was exciting qualifying, very close and Lewis was just marginally quicker in the end," said the German. "My lap was good as well, just not quick enough...missing that little bit out there.

"But it's OK. Pole isn't always the guy who then wins the race, I'm still optimistic for tomorrow."

Brazilian Felipe Massa, a double winner at Interlagos in his Ferrari days, qualified 13th for Williams in his final home race before leaving Formula One while Finnish team mate Valtteri Bottas starts 11th.

Jenson Button, who won the 2009 world championship at Interlagos for Brawn GP, qualified a disappointing 17th on the fourth anniversary of his and McLaren's last race win, also at the Sao Paulo circuit.

"We definitely sorted those problems out, didn't we?", the Briton said sarcastically over the team radio.

Button has one more race after Brazil before handing his seat to Belgian Stoffel Vandoorne.

Spanish team mate Fernando Alonso, whose two titles with Renault were won in Brazil, had a happier afternoon and will start 10th.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Tony Jimenez)

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Hamilton wins in Mexico but Rosberg is right behind

MEXICO CITY - Lewis Hamilton won the Mexican Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday, his landmark 51st career victory cutting Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg's overall lead to 19 points and keeping the German waiting for a first title.

The pole-to-flag victory was the triple world champion's eighth of the season and put him level with France's Alain Prost in the all-time lists of winners. Only Michael Schumacher (91) has more.

Rosberg, who would have clinched the title had he won and Hamilton finished 10th or lower, crossed the line 8.354 seconds behind to anchor champions Mercedes to a sixth one-two finish of the season.

The German can still clinch the title with a race in hand if he wins at Sao Paulo's Interlagos circuit in Brazil in two weeks' time.

"Lewis has been too fast this weekend," said Rosberg. "I just have to accept second place."

The race was largely processional until it exploded into controversy in the final laps with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel finishing fourth and then promoted to the podium before demotion back to fifth.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen was third on the track but was then handed a five second penalty for gaining an advantage by going off, pushing him down to fifth before Vettel's penalty for dangerous driving lifted him back to fourth.

That left Australian Daniel Ricciardo in third place but without a podium appearance and the chance to pour the champagne into his boot for another trademark 'shoey' celebration.

The Vettel-Verstappen-Ricciardo controversy provided the major talking point of the day, with bad language flying and accusations going to and fro.

"He has to let me go, he has to let me go," Vettel, who had been trying to pass Verstappen on the 67th of the 71 laps, exclaimed furiously over the team radio as the Dutchman refused to concede the place.

Vettel also directed a foul-mouthed outburst at race director Charlie Whiting, which was heard on television and for which he apologised, and then swerved across to the Red Bull driver after the finish with a finger raised and wagging.

"I was using a lot of sign language. You have to understand the adrenaline," said the four-times champion.

Verstappen said Vettel should go back to school.

"I don't know how many times he is using very bad language," said the teenager. "I will speak to him because this is how ridiculous he is handling it, he is just a very frustrated guy at the moment."

TIME PENALTY

Verstappen joined the Mercedes drivers in the waiting room before the podium ceremony but was hauled out after his penalty was imposed, with Vettel running hastily down the pit lane.

The arguments and accusations continued afterwards, with Vettel and Ricciardo then summoned to stewards and the German accused of changing his line while braking as Ricciardo tried to pass him.

In a race that saw all but one of the 22 starters finish, the safety car was deployed on the second lap when Mexican Esteban Gutierrez tagged Pascal Wehrlein's Manor and pushed him into Marcus Ericsson's Sauber.

There was more drama at the front where Hamilton made a good getaway but then locked up and trekked across the grass, cutting the first corner.

That incident, which left him battling serious tyre vibrations until his first pitstop, was held up by Verstappen as inconsistent stewarding, with the Briton also gaining an advantage but escaping any sanction.

Verstappen and Rosberg also made contact at the start, with the Dutch driver trying to find a way through on the inside from third place on the grid, but stewards took no action.

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen was sixth, Nico Hulkenberg seventh for Force India and the Williams pairing of Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa eighth and ninth.

Mexican Sergio Perez, the crowd favourite, took the final point for Force India in 10th place after a long battle with Massa.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Ken Ferris and Ian Ransom)

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Rosberg wins, Hamilton third in Japan

SUZAKA, Japan -- Nico Rosberg romped to victory at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday to extend his lead over world champion Lewis Hamilton in the Formula One title race.

The German claimed his first Suzuka win from pole as Hamilton took third after a dreadful start, Rosberg stretching his lead over his Mercedes rival to 33 points with just four races left this season.

"Woooooooh!" cried Rosberg over team radio after a fourth triumph in five races since the summer break and his ninth of 2016.

"Thanks a lot, guys. An Amazing weekend and congrats on winning the constructors (championship)," he added after he and Hamilton secured a third successive team title.

"It's 33 points, but I'm not focused on that. There's still a long way to go so I'm just keeping my head down."

Red Bull's Max Verstappen held off a furious challenge from Hamilton in the final few laps to take second after also finishing runner-up in Malaysia last weekend.

The Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen finished fourth and fifth after both turned the air blue over radio, complaining about back markers.

Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo, who inherited victory in Malaysia after Hamilton's engine caught fire, took sixth ahead of the Force Indias of Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg.

Hamilton, who has now failed to win since Hockenheim at end of July, almost fought back to take second as he tried to duck around Verstappen coming into the chicane on the last lap.

But the Dutch teenager blocked off the inside, forcing the Mercedes to lock up and skid into an escape road.

Rosberg, whose Finnish father Keke won the 1982 Formula One title, failed to convert pole position into victory in Japan the past two years, both times losing out to Hamilton.

But he got away cleanly this time, while Hamilton fell to eighth, radioing to the pits: "Sorry, guys."

"No stress, Lewis," came the reply before Hamilton began a rousing charge through the field to make up places.

Hamilton, who had hinted at sabotage from within his Mercedes team after his third power unit failure of the year last week in Malaysia, cut a forlorn figure on the podium, the 100th of his career.

"I did the best I could with where I was in the race," he said.

"I'll give it everything I've got (for the rest of the season), and we'll see what happens. Nico did a great job, so congrats to him."

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Rosberg leads Hamilton in opening practice at Suzuka

SUZUKA, Japan - World championship leader Nico Rosberg set the pace ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton as Mercedes dominated Friday's opening session of practice for the Japanese Grand Prix.

The German set the lead with one minute, 32.431 seconds, 0.215 seconds quicker than Hamilton, on a pleasant and sunny morning at the Suzuka circuit.

The Mercedes pair were a second clear of the Ferrari duo of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen who were third and fourth-fastest, respectively.

Vettel heads into the weekend carrying a three-place grid penalty for tipping Rosberg into a spin at the start of the last race in Malaysia.

Rosberg extended his lead over Hamilton to 23 points in the overall standings after the Briton was forced to retire from a comfortable lead in the Sepang race 16 laps from the finish.

As a result, Hamilton heads into Sunday's Japanese round desperately needing to revive his flagging title hopes with just five races remaining by clinching a third successive win at the Suzuka circuit.

Daniel Ricciardo, who inherited the win from Hamilton following his retirement in Malaysia was fifth fastest.

Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen, who claimed second behind the Australian to secure the team's first one-two finish since the 2013 season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix, was sixth.

Force India, locked in a battle for fourth in the overall team standings with Williams, showed a strong initial turn of speed.

German Nico Hulkenberg was seventh-fastest for the Silverstone-based squad, ahead of Mexican team-mate Sergio Perez, who trialled the 'halo' cockpit protection device.

Fernando Alonso, hoping to impress on home soil for Honda, his McLaren team's engine supplier, was ninth.

The Spaniard survived an early collision with the barriers when his car snapped out of control on the entry to the fast Spoon corner and slid backwards into the tyre wall lining the track.

(Editing by Greg Stutchbury)

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Hamilton storms to British Grand Prix victory

SILVERSTONE -- Lewis Hamilton streaked away to comfortably win his home British Grand Prix on Sunday at Silverstone, with Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg hanging on for a provisional second.

Third was the Red Bull of Max Verstappen, but championship leader Rosberg -- suffering late gear-box problems -- was under investigation over a radio communication that could spell further trouble for the German, who now only leads Hamilton by four points.

Hamilton, who started from pole in a race that began slowly behind the safety car because of heavy rain, has gradually eaten away at rival Rosberg's lead in the drivers' standings.

The Briton, the reigning world champion, has now made it four wins in the last five races to pile the pressure on Rosberg.

The duo had a last-lap collision last weekend in Austria, before Hamilton claimed a controversial victory, further straining already frosty relations between the two.

Rosberg was booed on the podium at Silverstone.

"We have the best fans here, thank you so much," Hamilton told the adoring 100,000 crowd.

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WORLD SPORTS: Rays to play in Havana, Venus ends Indian Wells boycott

Tampa Bay Rays to play in Havana during Obama visit

Reuters

The Tampa Bay Rays will become the first Major League Baseball franchise to play in Havana since 1999 when they face Cuba's national team in an exhibition this month coinciding with a historic visit by U.S. President Barack Obama.

The March 22 game, announced by MLB on Tuesday, has been planned for months. Major League Baseball, the organization that runs professional baseball in North America, said in November it would choose the Rays as the team to play in Havana if it could make a deal with the Cuban Baseball Federation.

"During a time of historic change, we appreciate the constructive role afforded by our shared passion for the game, and we look forward to experiencing Cuba's storied baseball tradition and the passion of its many loyal fans," MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement.

The game will be played at the 45,000-seat Latin American Stadium, site of a 1999 exhibition between the Baltimore Orioles and Cuba's national team. It has been undergoing improvements, including installation of a new infield, under MLB supervision.

Obama's visit on March 21-22 will mark the first by a sitting U.S. president since 1928 and the first since Fidel Castro's rebels overthrew a pro-American government in 1959.

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Venus ends Indian Wells boycott

Agence France-Presse

Venus Williams will end her 15-year boycott of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells next week, following in the footsteps of sister Serena who returned to the event last year.

The 35-year-old former world number one has not played the prestigious Californian event since 2001, when she and Serena were booed by sections of the crowd.

Her father Richard Williams has long alleged the family was subjected to repeated racial slurs after Venus withdrew from a semi-final against Serena due to a knee injury.

Venus said she had been prompted to return after seeing the warm reception her sister received last year, when she was given a 57-second standing ovation before her opening match on Stadium Court.

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Male boxers to abandon headgear at Rio Games after 32 years

Karolos Grohmann, Reuters
For the first time in 32 years male boxers will be able trade punches without any headgear at this year's Rio Games after the International Olympic Committee sanctioned a change introduced by world boxing federation AIBA.

AIBA adopted the change for amateur fighters some three years ago but needed to bring it to the IOC Executive Board, which noted it without objection on Tuesday, essentially rubber-stamping the decision and clearing the way for Rio.

The IOC said AIBA had presented medical research that showed concussions were less likely to occur without headgear than with.

Women boxers, who first competed at the 2012 Olympics, will continue wearing their protective gear.

Mercedes unleash Rosberg in second test

Agence France-Presse
World champions Mercedes sent another signal of their continued dominance to the rest of the Formula One paddock, as Nico Rosberg was fastest on the first day of the second pre-season test in Barcelona on Tuesday.

The German and defending world champion Lewis Hamilton are sharing driving duties on each of the four days in the Catalan capital this week due to the W07's remarkable reliability.

Rosberg registered the second best time of testing so far in 1min 23.022sec as Mercedes finally used the quicker soft tyres, after completing nearly 700 laps on the first four days of testing last week on the medium compound.

"It was nice for me to be able to push some more and produce some stronger lap times," said Rosberg. "That's when it's all the more enjoyable; taking the car to the limit and really pushing. It's been a good test, reliability has been good, the speed has been there - it's all working to plan."

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Ko hopes 'role model' Tiger will bounce back

Agence France-Presse
Women's world number one Lydia Ko paid tribute to her "role model" Tiger Woods on Tuesday, expressing hope that the golf legend will recover from injury and rejoin the tour.

Speaking to AFP before the HSBC Women's Champions tournament in Singapore, the 18-year-old said that Woods has been a top ambassador for the sport.

"No matter what Tiger is going through right now, Tiger will always be Tiger. Tiger grew the game, there's a lot of players that are playing on tour or are starting the game because of Tiger," said the New Zealander, who turned pro when she was 16.

"He's been a great role model, he still is... I think what he's done to grow the game is fantastic and hopefully he'll be able to get healthy and get back on the tour," she added.

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Ivy League gridiron teams eye tackle practice ban

Agence France-Presse

American football coaches of prestigious Ivy League college teams have voted to eliminate full-contact tackling during training in a radical measure aimed at mitigating the risk of brain injury, it was reported Tuesday.

The Ivy League, which includes Harvard, Yale and Princeton amongst its eight-member conference, had already reduced the number of full-contact practices a team could hold in a 2011 crackdown.

The latest safety measure, which would ban tackling during training in the regular season, comes against a backdrop of mounting concern over the health risks associated with America's most popular sport.

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Hamilton makes it a year of Mercedes poles

SPIELBERG, Austria - Lewis Hamilton seized pole position for the Austrian Grand Prix on Saturday in a damp qualifying session that saw both the Formula One world champion and his Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg skid off on their final laps.

The pole was Hamilton's seventh in eight races -- the same number he managed in all of last season -- and 45th of his career, taking him to third equal with Sebastian Vettel on the all-time list behind Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna.

It also completed a year of domination by Mercedes, with Brazilian Felipe Massa's pole for Williams in Austria last June the last time any driver from outside the team has started from the top slot.

"It was quite a difficult qualifying session for everyone because of the track conditions," said Hamilton, who spun off at turn one as he started his final quick lap on a drying track after morning rain.

"I was pushing that bit extra on the next run and just locked the rears," added the Briton, who leads Rosberg by 17 points after winning four races to the German's two.

Rosberg, who was two tenths slower than Hamilton going into his final lap, pushed just a bit too hard and careered across the runoff and into the gravel just as it seemed he was going to be quicker.

"I went on the astroturf out of the second to last corner. Maybe that was still a bit wet or something or I just overdid it after that, I'm not sure. I just lost it there into the last corner," said the German.

"I knew I had to go for it."

Ferrari's Vettel will line up in third place with Massa fourth for Williams and 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours winner Nico Hulkenberg fifth for Force India.

Mercedes-powered cars filled five of the top six slots at a 'power' circuit.

"Generally the Mercedes-powered cars can turn up the performance a bit. Even the Williams were also a lot closer than they were in practice," said four-times champion Vettel.

At a scenic circuit owned by energy drink giant Red Bull, 17-year-old Dutch rookie Max Verstappen provided some cheer for the unhappy hosts with seventh place on the grid for Red Bull's sister team Toro Rosso.

Both Red Bull's main drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat have 10 place grid penalties as a result of engine replacements and are set to start 18th and 15th respectively.

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen failed to get through the first phase of qualifying and was 18th before penalties applied to others moved the Finn up to 14th.

"How is that possible?," exclaimed the Finn, with the expletive deleted.

An element of farce was added to the session with McLaren's Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button each taking 25 place grid penalties in a field of just 20 cars for exceeding their allocation of power unit components.

Alonso qualified 15th and starts 19th while Button dropped from 17th to last. They will also have to serve time penalties on Sunday, an additional embarrassment with new Honda president Takahiro Hachigo attending the race.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Toby Davis and Martyn Herman)

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Hamilton hot favorite for triple triumph

LONDON - Lewis Hamilton starts the Formula One season as red-hot favorite to become a triple world champion but Niki Lauda, who knows how that feels, fears the battle could be tougher than ever.

The Briton won 11 races to Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg's five last year, with Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo taking the other three, and heads for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 15 with every reason to be confident.

The 'Silver Arrows' have been ominous in testing, lapping with metronomic efficiency and eye-openingly faster than anyone else once they finally got around to bolting on the quicker soft tyres.

"Expectations are enormously high because we won everything that we could win last year," triple champion Lauda, now non-executive chairman of the Mercedes works team, told Reuters in an interview.

"The logic is that everybody expects and wants to have the same thing (again) but I can tell you it is not that easy. A new season is a new season and everything starts from scratch.

"I think Lewis and Nico will fight again like always for the championship but my worry is there will be a third guy also getting involved, no question."

Who that man turns out to be remains an open question, although Finland's Valtteri Bottas may be a shrewd bet after Williams looked closest to Mercedes in testing.

The ever-smiling Ricciardo, now Red Bull's team leader following the departure of four times champion Sebastian Vettel to Ferrari, looks another solid candidate to take the fight to Mercedes.

"At the moment I would say that Williams is the closest, Red Bull and Ferrari I cannot tell you now because they had some signs of speed and then nothing happens again. Red Bull you can never under-estimate," said Lauda.

"They are all trying to catch up...the question is how close can they get?"

If last year was dominated by the duel, and deteriorating relationship, between Hamilton and Rosberg then fans can expect more of the same in a season that will be both faster and louder than 2014.

The latest William Hill betting odds have Hamilton 8/13 favourite to become only the second Briton after Jackie Stewart to take three titles, Rosberg 5/2 for the title and Vettel at 14/1 with Ricciardo 20/1.

"For me it's clear that Nico will attack even more this year because he lost last year, very simple," said Lauda. "I think it's going to be a tighter fight between them, because Nico wants to make sure now he can beat him."

The rules have not altered dramatically over the winter, with changes to the fronts of the cars and power unit allocation reduced from five to four per driver per season.

Honda have returned as partners to McLaren, after leaving the sport as a constructor in 2008, while Mexico City is back on the calendar for the first time since 1992.

Vettel's switch to underperforming Ferrari, where he follows in the footsteps of seven times champion and compatriot Michael Schumacher, was the headline move along with Fernando Alonso's return to misfiring McLaren.

Alonso will be absent from Australia on doctors' orders, with the Spaniard still recovering from his crash in testing in Barcelona last month, with Denmark's Kevin Magnussen serving as a stand-in.

Dutch rookie Max Verstappen will become the youngest ever driver, at just 17 years old, with Spanish newcomer Carlos Sainz joining him at Toro Rosso in a line up with a combined age of just 37.

Only 10 teams are entered in what should be a 20 race championship, subject to Germany being confirmed, with Caterham losing their fight for survival and some others facing another tough struggle to keep going.

"I think we are at very significant risk of losing more teams. We said that last year and nothing's changed," Force India deputy principal Bob Fernley told Reuters. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Toby Davis)

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Rosberg wins in Brazil to cut Hamilton's lead

SAO PAULO - Germany's Nico Rosberg won the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday to end team mate Lewis Hamilton's run of five successive victories and cut the Briton's championship lead to 17 points with one race remaining.

Hamilton took the chequered flag 1.4 seconds behind after setting the fastest lap, with Mercedes breaking Formula One records with 11 one-two finishes and 30 podium placings in a season.

"It was a great weekend," said Rosberg, who started on pole position after lapping fastest in phase of qualifying at Interlagos.

"The whole weekend I've been feeling comfortable in the car, I was able to attack and control the gap to Lewis in the race so that worked out great.

"There's still all to play for. I just need to keep this going now," added the German, whose win made up for last weekend when he started on pole in Texas and lost out to Hamilton.

The final race at Abu Dhabi on Nov. 23 will offer double points for the first time, and 50 for the winner, but Hamilton needs only a second-place finish to wrap up his second title.

Hamilton has 334 points to Rosberg's 317.

The team's victory equalled the record of 15 in a season held jointly by Ferrari and McLaren, with Rosberg now on five to his British rival's 10.

BIG MISTAKE

The two Mercedes drivers were in a race of their own on a sunny Sao Paulo afternoon

Hamilton's only scare came on lap 28 as he pushed to gain an advantage when Rosberg pitted, spinning and skidding off at turn four. That cost him seven seconds and a chance to win.

"I was much quicker up until that point and on that lap I'd gone a second quicker while Nico pitted," the Briton told reporters. "I thought I was going to pit at the end of that lap so I used everything of the tyres.

"The next lap I had nothing left."

After he pitted, the 2008 champion steadily narrowed the gap until the 'Silver Arrows' were just half a second apart. But Rosberg never allowed him to get close enough to make a move.

"It was an amazing race," said Hamilton, who had hoped to become the first British driver to win six races in a row.

Brazilian Felipe Massa returned to the podium in front of a cheering crowd with third place for Williams, 41 seconds behind despite a stop/go penalty for speeding in the pitlane.

Massa had only himself to blame when he also pulled in to the McLaren pits instead of Williams.

"I'm so happy with the race, not happy with my mistakes today," he said.

"I stopped in McLaren (garage) because they changed our garage this race and we are a lot more in the middle and McLaren with the similar colour...I thought it was our garage."

Mercedes-engined cars filled the four top slots, with McLaren's Jenson Button fourth, and Red Bull's quadruple world champion Sebastian Vettel fifth.

Ferrari duo Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen were sixth and seventh with Force India's Nico Hulkenberg eighth and McLaren's Kevin Magnussen ninth. Finland's Valtteri Bottas took the last point for Williams.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo, winner of three races this season, retired his Red Bull to end a run of 15 scoring races in a row. The outgoing champions at least ensured they finished runners-up in the standings.

Only nine teams and 18 cars started, with Marussia no longer in business and Caterham in administration.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Tony Jimenez/Gene Cherry)

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Rosberg error hands Hamilton victory in Italy

MONZA, Italy - Lewis Hamilton battled back from a troubled start to win the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday after Mercedes team mate Nico Rosberg cracked under pressure and saw his Formula One championship lead cut to 22 points.

Rosberg, whose 29th lap mistake at the first chicane cost him the lead and the race, finished second as dominant Mercedes celebrated a first one-two since Austria in June and their seventh in 13 races.

Brazilian Felipe Massa was third for Williams in his first podium appearance since May 2013.

Rosberg, who now has 238 points to Hamilton's 216 with six races remaining after the end of the European part of the season, recognised his error.

"It's a terrible feeling to lose the lead like that but in the end Lewis was really quick in the whole race. He came like a rocket and I had to push and I made the mistake," he said.

With the sport taking a deep breath as the rivals lined up together on the front row, two weeks after they had collided in Belgium on the second lap, the start provided immediate drama.

Hamilton had taken pole position for the first time since May but problems with the car's start controls left him struggling to get away. He was fourth into the first corner as Rosberg led untroubled but kept his cool.

"I'm quite grateful today that I didn't lose it, I didn't end up crashing in the first corner, I didn't end up touching anyone, I didn't end up locking or anything like that. I managed to keep my composure," he said.

It was the start of a thrilling chase, with the 2008 world champion hunting down his quarry and seizing the lead when Rosberg missed the chicane.

The Briton had earlier shunned advice from his race engineer to back off and save tyres for a later attack and it proved the right approach.

The two crossed the finish line 3.1 seconds apart, with Hamilton celebrating his first win since Britain in July. It was his sixth of the season and 28th of his career, taking him ahead of triple champion Jackie Stewart in the all-time lists.

DIFFICULT RACE

"It was a difficult race," said Hamilton. "For whatever reason, at the start the button didn't press which engages the launch sequence.

"For the formation lap it didn't work and when I got to the grid and put it on again, again it didn't work. It was very strange. I've never really had that happen before."

In a sport full of conspiracy theorists, Rosberg and team bosses ridiculed a suggestion that he might have been ordered to cede place to Hamilton as a result of what happened in Spa.

"I've heard about that, but what would be the reason for me to do something like that deliberately? There is no possible reason," he said, explaining that he had missed the chicane to avoid locking up and 'flat-spotting' a tyre - which would have forced an extra pitstop and a lot of lost time.

Massa's podium came on Brazilian independence day and after the team had announced the former Ferrari driver was staying for 2015 along with Valtteri Bottas.

The points, at the fastest track on the calendar, meant Williams leapfrogged Ferrari into third place.

"I hope really we can get this third place in the Constructors' Championship. It would be fantastic for the whole team. I'm so happy to be on the podium here in this amazing place that I really love," said Massa.

In the absence of their current Ferrari heroes, the passionate home crowd welcomed Massa onto the podium with cheers as they spilled out in a vast red wave onto the finish straight.

Rosberg, blamed by his own team for the second lap Spa collision that led to Hamilton's retirement from that race, was booed for the second grand prix in a row.

Massa's Finnish team mate Bottas was fourth following another impressive day of overtaking after he had dropped from the second row to 10th at the end of the first lap.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso retired from his team's home race on lap 29 with a failure in the car's energy recovery system, his first mechanical retirement in 86 races, while Kimi Raikkonen finished ninth.

The Finn crossed the line 10th but moved up after McLaren's Kevin Magnussen was penalised for forcing Bottas off.

Until Sunday, Alonso was the only driver to have scored points in every race this season.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo, winner of the two previous races, had another brilliant race for Red Bull and finished fifth after some breathtaking overtaking moves including one on four times champion team mate Sebastian Vettel who was sixth.

Mexican Sergio Perez came seventh for Force India after a wheel-to-wheel battle with McLaren's Jenson Button in eighth. The championship now heads east to Singapore and Japan. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Pritha Sarkar and Justin Palmer)

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Mercedes may meet their match in Monaco

MONACO - After dominating the first five races of the Formula One season, with four successive one-two finishes, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg may not have it all their own way on the streets of Monaco on Sunday.

If the sound of Mercedes' rivals clutching at straws has become more audible, unlike the cars, a flutter on a different winner could still be a better bet than many placed in the imposing casino this weekend.

"I think Monte Carlo will be one of the few opportunities to challenge Mercedes, especially for Red Bull," Ferrari's Fernando Alonso told reporters after Spain where Hamilton chalked up his fourth win in a row for the German manufacturer with team mate Rosberg second.

"On the corners they (Red Bull) are very fast and on the straights they seem to lose a lot of lap time. In Monte Carlo there are no straights so maybe Red Bull could challenge Mercedes there. We'll see," said Alonso.

Alonso has won twice in Monaco, once for Renault and once for McLaren, and would become the first driver to win the most glamorous race on the calendar with three separate teams.

Monaco, with its narrow streets ringed by unforgiving metal fences, may be a processional race with little overtaking but it can never be predictable. The fickle weather, and the ever-present risk of safety cars and collisions, sees to that.

However Ferrari, the most glamorous team, have not threaded their way to victory in the year's most alluring race since Michael Schumacher's triumph in 2001.

TOUGHEST RACE

Red Bull, with Australian Daniel Ricciardo and quadruple champion Sebastian Vettel third and fourth at the previous race in Spain, look to be picking up speed.

"They are still the benchmark," recognised Mercedes motorsport head Toto Wolff.

"The power unit (in Monaco) is not so important," said the Austrian. "Monaco is always different and I guess there is a team that has clearly an advantage at the moment and probably on a street circuit like Monaco everything can be different."

History backs that up: On the last three occasions that a team has started a season with five straight wins - Ferrari in 2004 and Williams in 1996 and 1992 - the run has bust in Monaco.

This year, it may just be Hamilton's rather than Mercedes' winning streak that comes to an end as the championship-leading Briton chases his fifth in a row.

Rosberg won from pole last year and grew up in the principality.

The German knows every kerb and corner, every turn and twist, from his boyhood journey from home to school and is determined to use that familiarity to good effect after falling three points behind his team mate in Spain.

"To re-gain the advantage at my home race would be fantastic, so I'll be pushing harder than ever to make that happen," he said.

It is also a favourite of the Briton, also a Monaco resident and winner with McLaren in 2008 when he took the championship.

"I honestly never expected I'd win four consecutive Grands Prix in my career and I'd love to continue that run here," said Hamilton.

Red Bull have won Monaco three times in four years, twice with now departed Australian Mark Webber whose successor and compatriot Daniel Ricciardo is raring to go.

If racing around Monaco is, as Brazilian triple champion Nelson Piquet once observed, like cycling around your living room then Ricciardo is up for it.

"When I was a kid I used to love riding my little bike around inside the house. It was more fun, there were more obstacles and a bit more danger. That really is what this is like," he said.

The new V6 turbo hybrid engines, with more torque and wheelspin, also threaten to liven things up with drivers likely to be more on the ragged edge than ever.

"I think Monaco will be a very, very difficult race," commented Brazilian Felipe Massa.

"We drive with the car a lot more sideways. The torque we have from the engine is maybe double what we had last year, and the grip from the tyre is not very high, so Monaco will be a very easy race to crash," added the Williams driver.

"I think it will be the toughest race of the season."

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Patrick Johnston)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Rosberg wins season-opening Australian GP

MELBOURNE - Nico Rosberg drew first blood for Mercedes in the new Formula One season with a dominant Australian Grand Prix victory on Sunday after pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton and world champion Sebastian Vettel retired with reliability problems.

The 28-year-old German capitalised on a brilliant start from third on the grid, snatching the lead before the first turn and roaring to a 24.5-second victory ahead of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo under a cloudy sky at Albert Park.

Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen finished third on his race debut for McLaren.

Rosberg, tipped to duel with team mate Hamilton for the championship, celebrated his fourth race victory and first since last year's British Grand Prix, when he was also the beneficiary of technical mishaps to Hamilton and Vettel.

"Brilliant stuff, what a car you've given me! What a car!" Rosberg said over the team radio after crossing the line.

The gaping margin of victory underscored Mercedes' superior preparations for F1's technical revolution, which saw all teams struggle during winter testing with the new V6 turbocharged hybrid engines.

The glitches continued as only 14 of the 22 cars finished on a gusty day at the bumpy street circuit which was doused by a brief rain-shower early in the race.

Hamilton, who snatched pole position at the end of a wet qualifying session on Saturday, noticeably lacked power on his start and was called in by his team to retire on the third lap.

Twelfth off the grid, Vettel also struggled at the start and retired only a few laps after Hamilton, complaining of engine performance problems.

That snapped a nine-race winning streak for the German dating back to the Belgian Grand Prix in August.

Ricciardo thrilled home fans by taking his maiden podium spot in his first race weekend with Red Bull and drove with admirable composure after being challenged by Magnussen over the closing laps.

Magnussen's podium, the first by a Dane in Formula One and the team's first since 2012, was an exact match of Hamilton's first F1 race for McLaren in 2007 when the Briton qualified fourth and finished third.

McLaren's Jenson Button finished fourth, with Ferrari's Fernando Alonso fifth.

Williams driver Valtteri Bottas finished sixth for his best F1 result after an outstanding race from 15th on the grid. His eight point haul was more than his team scored in all of last season.

The race began farcically, with Marussia driver Max Chilton stalling on the grid before the pre-start installation lap and his team mate Jules Bianchi then repeating the mishap, forcing a second formation lap.

Both Marussias started from pit-lane behind Lotus's Romain Grosjean, who was also dealt a drive-through penalty for leaving his garage prior to the 15-minute signal before the race.

Japan's Kamui Kobayashi lived up to his reputation as a combustible racer by ploughing into the back of Felipe Massa's Williams at the start, taking both drivers out of the race at the first corner and prompting an FIA investigation.

(Reporting by Ian Ransom; Editing by Sudipto Ganguly/Alan Baldwin)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com