Nigel Mansell Slams Lewis Hamilton

Former British Formula One champion Nigel Mansell has slammed Lewis Hamilton and has called on the British driver to show maturity, Lewis has been the subject of controversial incidents on and off the track recently.

The Briton was involved in two accidents in Monaco, colliding with Felipe Massa and Pastor Maldonado, the McLaren driver was then penalised for his actions by the stewards, which he described as "frickin' ridiculous".

Hamilton then caused a stir by suggesting that the action taken against him was "maybe because I'm black, that's what Ali G says..."

The British driver then was forced to apologise for the 'joke', but then he didn't help himself next time out in Canada when he was forced to retire after a collision with team-mate Jenson Button.

Hamilton then publicly criticised his team for selecting the wrong set of tyres which resulted in him qualifying in tenth spot at the British GP.

"Lewis is not mature and he's not got a head on him," Mansell is quoted by ESPN as telling F1 Racing magazine.

"I think he needs to settle himself down because the recent episode at Monaco was unnecessary and unflattering both for himself and Formula One. I thought his driving style was very poor because he had no respect for anyone else because where is anyone going to go?

"To say that overtaking is impossible at Monaco, well... I've done it coming out of the tunnel several times... but then to say what he said about the stewards was appalling. I was very disappointed and he's got to remember that he has been a World Champion so he should act accordingly and appropriately at all times," he added.

The former Williams man suggests that Hamilton should use his team-mate and fellow title winner, Jenson Button, as a measure of how to behave.

"Both Lewis and Jenson were both great World Champions at the time and it's absolutely fantastic to have them both in the same team but Jenson, for me, carries with him just that little bit more maturity," said the 57-year-old.

Lewis Hamilton Looking Forward To The Canadian GP

Lewis Hamilton has insisted that he expects a big result from this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix, the track has always been good for Hamilton, and having taken is first pole position and first formula one race there.

The McLaren driver said the circuit suits his driving and suggests the car is well suited the the Montreal circuit.
Hamilton has been under scrutiny since the Monaco Grand Prix over his comments towards the race stewards, but he is keen to put the episode behind him and concentrate on winning.

"Montreal is a very special place for me. It's where I took my first Formula One pole position and won my first race in 2007.

"I've always got on really well with the track, the layout seems to suit my driving style, and I won there last year from pole position.

"Our car should be well suited to this track; we have a great engine, the best KERS Hybrid system in the sport and excellent traction out of slow corners.

"All in all, it's set to be another good weekend for us - I'll be looking for a strong result on Sunday."

Sebastian Vettel Claims Pole Position

World champion Sebastian Vettel claimed his fifth pole position in six races in qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix on Saturday.

The Red Bull driver lapped the 3.340km Monte-Carlo street circuit in a time of one minute 13.556 seconds to go 0.441secs quicker than McLaren's Jenson Button.

Vettel's team-mate Mark Webber lines up third ahead of Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, with Mercedes GP's Michael Schumacher fifth.

Alonso's team-mate Felipe Massa starts sixth ahead of McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg.

Williams driver Pastor Maldonado will start ninth, however the final driver to make it through to the top-10 shoot-out, Sauber's Sergio Perez, is a doubt for Sunday's race after suffering a heavy crash in the final session.

Alonso Aware Of Schumacher Threat

Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso has suggested that Michael Schumacher could be his biggest rival for the forthcoming season and insist that former Champion could pose the biggest threat for all drivers, despite struggling in the 2010 season.

The seven time World Champion finished ninth in his first season back since retiring in 2006 and Alonso feels the German will bounce back stronger next season, the Spaniard says he has already noticed a different Schumacher who is destined for success this time around.

However Alonso insists; "There will be five world champions on the track and the most dangerous champion for me is always Michael."

Alonso who is away with the Ferrari team on a Ski trip also added,

"Now in January if I have to choose one name I have to say Michael.

"He is seven-times champion. He has nothing to prove. He had a difficult season but he is still a champion.

"He is still super class and if the car is right he will be a contender."

Alonso is also aware that Redbull’s Sebastian Vettel and McLaren’s duo of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson button will be waiting in the wings to capitalise should any mistakes be made on the circuit.

"No doubt Sebastian will be a contender. He will have experience and will be calm in certain moments. He will drive better than last year and that makes him dangerous to us," Alonso explained.

"McLaren will also be one of the favourites."

Alonso is confident team-mate Felipe Massa will improve on the last seasons sixth place finish, he added; "Hopefully our car is better than the others and my toughest rival next year is Felipe,"

Sebastian Vettel wins Brazilian GP - Red Bull win Constructors Championship

Nico Hulkenburg was unable to maintain his pole position start as he came under instant pressure from the guys around him, with Vettel, Webber, Alonso and Hamilton all vying for his position. In this afternoon's Brazilian Grand Prix we saw no drivers championship decided, but that will go down to wire and will be decided in Abu Dhabi in two weeks time, Red Bull did claim the Constructors Championship for the first time after there drivers finished in first and second place with Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber respectivley. Both drivers drove a formiddable race to keep up the heat on current leader Fernando Alonso who finished in third today. Alonso was needing a first place finish to claim the championship today, but it wasn't to be.

Britian's Lewis Hamilton finished in fourth place, keeping himself in with a chance of winning the title again in two weeks time, but Button finished fifth ending his chance to regain the title.

Fernando Alonso currently leads the drivers championship and would need only a second place finish to be crowed champion, but the spainard will have Vettel, Webber and Hamilton breathing down his next. So it's off to Abu Dhabi for two weeks time. Who will be crowned champion?

Forumla One Interlagos Qualifying

Rookie Formula One driver Nico Hulkenberg caused an upset by taking pole position in qualifying at Interlagos this afternoon ahead of tomorrow's Brazilian Grand Prix. His team-mate, home-town lad Rubens Barrichello finished in sixth place. The result marks the team’s first pole since the European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring in 2005 and the first in one hundred races.

Hulkenburg said, "I didn’t expect to be on pole today but the team gave me a car that worked really well in these conditions and I hooked up a tidy lap. My engineer came over the radio and told me I was on pole, but I couldn’t quite believe it. It’s such an amazing feeling."

He also added, "We have to stay realistic for the race, and I’m aware that there are drivers behind me fighting for the championship, but we are fighting for position and we will be doing everything we can to get a good result. For now, thanks to AT&T Williams for giving me a really great car today; I’m just so happy and I want to enjoy the moment with the team."

His team-mate, Rubens Barrichello added, "I am truly happy for the team; it’s been a wonderful afternoon for us. We have a pole position, just not with me!

"I am thrilled for Nico though. In these conditions, you need to keep temperatures up in the tyres, but I had a car in front of me going a bit slow so I lost temperature and went off. I’m pleased with P6, it’s still a strong place to start the race from".

German Sebastian Vettel finished in second place. He said, “It was a tricky session. It was a tough call in Q3 after the first run on intermediate tyres, the circuit looked dry, but the last sector was very tricky. In the end I think everyone decided to go on to dry tyres. 

"The track was getting better and better, but it was still slippery. At first I thought I had missed pole by only a tenth, but then I saw that there was another digit and Nico had a second lead over us! Congratulations to him, it’s very easy to make a mistake in these conditions. We were targeting for pole today, but it could have been worse in the difficult conditions, so I’m happy to start from second.”

Mark Webber recorded third position crossing the line on 1m 15.637s. He added, “I enjoyed that, it was a challenging session for all of us. It’s easy to get things wrong in those conditions and not qualify, so I’m very happy to get that position near the front. It was really tricky to get clean laps in Q3, but I did my best. It was pretty close between Sebastian and I and we’re both up there. 

"It was a good team performance today and both Seb and I have laid good foundations for the Constructors’ Championship, so there are a lot of positives from today. We’re in a good position for tomorrow. Nico (Hulkenberg) got his car working very well, he was very confident and got the most out of it when it mattered, so congratulations to him for pole, it was like he was driving on a different track!”

Elsewhere Button practically ended his reign as Formula One champion by qualifying in eleventh place.  He has more or less admitted defeat.  "Before, there was a slither of hope of retaining the championship but now it's gone, it's basically impossible," the Briton told reporters after qualifying 11th for Sunday's race.

"My main aim is just to have some fun tomorrow and see how many points we can get," he added, accentuating the positive.

Team-mate Lewis Hamilton finished in a credible fourth, just behind Hulkenburg, Vettel and Webber. The Brit will be looking for a good start tomorrow and hoping to collect some points to close the gap at the top of the Championship with only one race after tomorrow's Brazilian GP.

“I’ve started from fourth at this track before [in 2008], and it’s not my favourite spot, but I can’t really complain today. On the other hand, on my final lap, I got a bit held up in the final corner when someone was backing-up ahead of me, which was frustrating.

“But the car didn’t feel too bad – it wasn’t spectacularly good in the wet, but it felt a lot better in the dry at the end of Q3. For tomorrow, I think we’ve got good race pace and good end-of-straight speed; so, yes, I think we’re in a good position. We’re definitely still in the world championship fight.

“I’m confident that I’ll be able to battle my way forwards from fourth position on the grid, because we’re all close at the front. We can fight [one another]. It’s also quite cool to see Nico [Hulkenberg] right up there – so well done to him! – but my aim for tomorrow is to get ahead of everyone in front of me!”

1. Nico Hulkenberg Germany Williams-Cosworth 1m 14.470s
2. Sebastian Vettel Germany Red Bull-Renault 1m 15.519s
3. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault 1m 15.637s
4. Lewis Hamilton Britain McLaren-Mercedes 1m 15.747s
5. Fernando Alonso Spain Ferrari-Ferrari 1m 15.989s
6. Rubens Barrichello Brazil Williams-Cosworth 1m 16.203s
7. Robert Kubica Poland Renault-Renault 1m 16.552s
8. Michael Schumacher Germany Mercedes-Mercedes 1m 16.925s
9. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari-Ferrari 1m 17.101s
10. Vitaly Petrov Russia Renault-Renault 1m 17.656s

11. Jenson Button Britain McLaren-Mercedes 1m 19.288s
12. Kamui Kobayashi Japan BMW Sauber-Ferrari 1m 19.385s
13. Nico Rosberg Germany Mercedes-Mercedes 1m 19.486s
14. Jaime Alguersuari Spain Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m 19.581s
15. Sebastien Buemi Switzerland Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m 19.847s*
16. Nick Heidfeld Germany BMW Sauber-Ferrari 1m 19.899s
17. Vitantonio Liuzzi Italy Force India-Mercedes 1m 20.357s

18. Adrian Sutil Germany Force India-Mercedes 1m 20.830s*
19. Timo Glock Germany Virgin-Cosworth 1m 22.130s
20. Jarno Trulli Italy Lotus-Cosworth 1m 22.250s
21. Heikki Kovalainen Finland Lotus-Cosworth 1m 22.378s
22. Lucas di Grassi Brazil Virgin-Cosworth 1m 22.810s
23. Christian Klien Austria HRT-Cosworth 1m 23.083s
24. Bruno Senna Brazil HRT-Cosworth 1m 23.796s