2010 Formula One season

Lewis Hamilton, the current championship leader

Jenson Button, the defending world champion

"F1 2010" redirects here. For the upcoming video game, see F1 2010 (video game).

The 2010 Formula One season is the 61st Formula One season. The technical and sporting regulations applicable for this season have been the subject of much debate. The reigning Driver's Champion, Jenson Button, has joined McLaren, and the reigning Constructor's Champions, Brawn GP, have been bought by Mercedes-Benz and renamed Mercedes GP. The season has seen the return of the most successful driver in the sport with Michael Schumacher coming out of retirement after a three-year absence.^[1] The season's first race was held on March 14 in Bahrain.

Pre-season

Dispute over regulations and breakaway series

The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) had planned to introduce a budget cap, in order to safeguard the sport during the current economic downturn. The proposal had an optional budget cap of €30 million ($45 million, £27 million), with greater technical and design freedoms allowed to teams who nominated to use it. The teams objected to what they believed would be a two-tier championship and five of the teams within the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA), Ferrari, BMW Sauber, Renault, Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso announced their intentions to withdraw from the 2010 championship.^[2][3] BMW Sauber later announced on their withdrawal from Formula One at the end of the 2009 season, due to economic problems.^[4]

Following negotiations, the FOTA teams unanimously decided to withdraw at the end of the 2009 season unless the budget cap rules were changed.^[5] Williams and Force India both submitted their own entries and were temporarily suspended from FOTA,^[6][7] while the remaining teams submitted conditional entries for the 2010 season. The 2010 entry list was published by the FIA on 12 June, which included all 2009 teams and three new teams, Campos Meta, Virgin Racing and US F1 Team.^[8] Discussions between the FIA and FOTA failed to find a resolution to the budget cap issues and the eight FOTA teams announced intentions to form a breakaway series for 2010.^[9] However, following a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council on 24 June, FOTA agreed to remain in Formula One and FIA president Max Mosley confirmed he would not stand for re-election in October.^[10]

During a meeting on 8 July between the FIA and FOTA on future regulations, the teams walked out of the meeting after being informed that they were not entered for the 2010 season and could therefore have no input on regulatory discussions.^[11] In response it was announced that plans for a breakaway series were still being pursued.^[12] Negotiations on a new Concorde Agreement directly with CVC, the commercial rights holders, led to the eventual end of the dispute with its signing by the FIA on 1 August. The new Concorde Agreement will secure the sports future until its expiration in 2012.^[13]

Testing

The new season test schedule started on 1 December 2009 with a three-day 'Young Driver Test' (for drivers with fewer than three Formula One race starts to their name) at Spain's Circuito de Jerez. British Formula Three Champion Daniel Ricciardo was fastest for Red Bull Racing. As with 2009, the teams will be allowed a maximum of 15,000 km (9,300 mi) over the course of fifteen days in February. Testing sessions were confirmed for Valencia (1–3 February), Jerez (10–13 February and 17–20 February), and Barcelona (25–28 February).^[14] All but Campos/Hispania and US F1 took part in the pre-season tests.^[15][16]

Testing sessions at Jerez were constantly interrupted by heavy rain.

Pre-season testing started at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia with seven teams. Ferrari dominated the test session, with Felipe Massa setting the fastest lap times on days one^[17] and two.^[18] In his first appearance for the team, Fernando Alonso set the fastest overall time on the third day of the test with 1:11.470.^[19]

Virgin Racing had aerodynamic problems during the tests in Jerez and Barcelona.

The second session took place at Circuito de Jerez with heavy downpours throughout the test. This also marked the first public test for new team Virgin Racing who only managed five laps after a shortage of parts became a problem.^[20] Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap of the test during a dry Saturday session with 1:19.583.^[21]

The third test at Jerez for another four-day test was also affected by mixed weather conditions.^[22][23] Lotus Racing started its first public test with the T127.^[24] The penultimate^[25] and last days saw sunny weather with Jenson Button setting the fastest time (1:18.871).^[26]

The last pre-season test took place at Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona. The test started in sunny weather with rain showers scattered through the weekend. Virgin's testing misery carried on with Lucas di Grassi crashing^[27] and more mechanical issues.^[28] Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap of the week (1:20.472) with most teams doing low fuel runs on Sunday.^[29]

Car release schedule

Report

Michael Schumacher returned to the grid with the Mercedes GP team.

The season started in Bahrain, with Fernando Alonso leading team-mate Felipe Massa for a Ferrari 1-2, although the race was considered disappointing by many within the sport.^[48] Pole sitter Sebastian Vettel was set to win the race when a spark plug problem caused his car to slow, allowing the Ferraris and McLaren's Lewis Hamilton to overtake and finish on the podium. Seven-time champion Michael Schumacher and defending champion Jenson Button had disappointing races, finishing sixth and seventh, while Lotus was the best of the new teams, with both cars classified at the end of the race.

Button won a rain-affected Australian Grand Prix, with his decision to pit early for slick tyres allowing him to move up the order, taking the lead as Vettel once again suffered reliability issues on lap 25. Renault's Robert Kubica drove a strong race to finish second, while Alonso recovered well from last, after a collision with Schumacher in the first corner, finishing fourth.^[49] Hispania Racing achieved their first finish when Karun Chandhok finished five laps down on Button, in fourteenth position.

Red Bull finally managed to take their first win of the year at the Malaysian race, with Vettel and Webber driving a dominant race to finish 1-2, after a rain soaked qualifying session left main rivals McLaren and Ferrari at the back of the grid. Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg finished in third, while Hamilton had an excellent recovery, finishing sixth from twentieth. Jaime Alguersuari and Nico Hülkenberg scored their maiden F1 points, and Virgin Racing's Lucas di Grassi and Hispania's Bruno Senna finished their first Formula One races, with di Grassi achieving the first finish for Virgin.^[50]

Robert Kubica finished second in Australia.

At the Chinese Grand Prix, Red Bull locked out the front row but made the wrong tyre calls in a rain affected race and McLaren scored their first one-two finish since the 2007 Italian Grand Prix, with Button scoring his second victory of the season. Nico Rosberg finished third, while Renault's newcomer Vitaly Petrov took his and Russia's first Formula One points. Virgin´s reliability problems continued with Timo Glock failing to start and Lucas di Grassi starting not just eight laps down, but also dropping out after only seven further laps.

At the Spanish Grand Prix, Red Bull again locked out the front row and Mark Webber won the race with a dominant display. Sebastian Vettel lost second position to Lewis Hamilton during the pitstops. He then suffered brake failure and had to nurse the car home, eventually coming home third after Hamilton's wheel rim failed, causing a puncture and throwing him into the tyre wall on the penultimate lap. This allowed Alonso to take second. Kamui Kobayashi and Timo Glock also finished their first race of the season in Barcelona.

The Monaco Grand Prix featured several incidents which led to four safety car periods, the first being on the first lap after Hülkenberg crashed in the tunnel. During this period World Champion Button retired with an overheating engine. Pole sitter Mark Webber led throughout the race setting fastest laps until the last part of the race when he was told to hold back a little. All six cars of the new teams retired for various reasons, the most spectacular being Jarno Trulli and Chandhok's collision towards the end of the race, where Trulli attempted to pass Chandhok at La Rascasse and his Lotus went over the top of Chandhok's Hispania. The safety car was deployed for the last remaining laps, meaning the race result looked set. However on the final corner, as the safety car went into the pits, Fernando Alonso – who had risen from 24th to 6th – went slightly wide and Schumacher took full advantage of this to overtake him and claim 6th place. This overtaking maneuver was later deemed to be against article 40.13 of the sporting regulations. Schumacher was subsequently penalised 20 seconds of race time, which demoted him to 12th place.^[51]

In Turkey, Webber and Vettel looked set for another 1-2 but a collision between the two drivers resulted in Vettel retiring and Webber being demoted to 3rd place. The McLarens of Hamilton and Button capitalised on their rivals mistakes to take a 1-2 for their team despite a close battle between the two team-mates later in the race, while Kobayashi took Sauber's first point of the season.

Lewis Hamilton leading Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso at the Canadian Grand Prix. Hamilton won the race to take the drivers' championship lead.

In Canada, Hamilton ended Red Bull's unbroken run of pole positions, and went on to win a very eventful race, with Button finishing second from a grid position of 4th to make it a second successive McLaren 1-2, and the third McLaren 1-2 of the season. Fernando Alonso finished the race in third, having started third, although was disappointed not to have been able to win the race after having fallen victim to traffic on 2 separate occasions, giving first Hamilton and then Button opportunities to overtake. Sebastian Vettel finished 4th, Webber 5th after having started 7th due to incurring a 5-place grid penalty for a gearbox change under parc ferme conditions. This race gave the lead of the drivers' championship to Lewis Hamilton, 3 points ahead of Button who was a further 3 points ahead of Mark Webber in 3rd place. McLaren's pre-race lead of 1 point in the constructors' championship over Red Bull Racing increased to a 22-point lead due to this result.

At Valencia, Sebastian Vettel got his title ambitions back on track with a win. Hamilton finished 2nd despite a drive through penalty, while his team-mate Button followed closely behind in third. Mark Webber had a huge collision with Heikki Kovalainen after pitting on lap 8, in which his Red Bull flipped violently at 190 mph (310 km/h), landing upside down before bouncing over and careering into the barriers. Alonso finished 9th, after losing out due to being caught behind the safety car, although he was promoted one place after the race due to a penalty for Sébastien Buemi, he was furious with stewards for taking so long to announce Hamilton's penalty that it didn't cost him any places. Rubens Barrichello scored Williams' best result of the season with fourth. Sauber scored their second double finish, showing their technical improvements. Kamui Kobayashi spent all but four laps on his first set of tyres. He rejoined ninth, but was able to put moves on Alonso and Buemi – on the penultimate lap and the final corner respectively – to finish seventh.

Jenson Button advanced ten places during the British Grand Prix to keep a hold of second place in the Drivers' Championship.

The British Grand Prix saw the outbreak of the "Red Bull Civil War",^[52] when Red Bull team principal Christian Horner removed the team's Silverstone-spec front wing from Mark Webber's car and placed it on Vettel's car for qualifying and the race after the German driver damaged his in the final practice session. Webber went on to win the race while Vettel lost places at the start after running wide in the first corner. He eventually recovered to seventh place after a safety car was deployed mid-race. The Australian was left outraged at the team's actions, even after his victory. Hamilton finished second, with Nico Rosberg claiming Mercedes' first podium since the Chinese Grand Prix.

Fernando Alonso went on to claim his second victory of the season at Hockenheim in controversial circumstances when Ferrari appeared to issue a coded order to race leader Felipe Massa to move aside and allow Alonso through. Massa went on to claim second place with Sebastian Vettel third, while the stewards fined Ferrari US$100,000 and summoned them before the FIA World Motor Sport Council to answer charges of issuing team orders to manipulate the race outcome, though Ferrari denied any wrongdoing. Alonso's victory put him back in contention for the World Championship with nine races left in the season.

One week later in Hungary, Red Bull's early promise of a dominant showing was disrupted by a chaotic safety car that saw Adrian Sutil and Robert Kubica collide in pit lane, Nico Rosberg lose a tyre after a botched stop and Sebastian Vettel breaking a safety car rule which cost him the lead of the race. Mark Webber went on to take his fourth victory of the season and the championship lead after Lewis Hamilton retired, with Alonso second and Vettel in third. Vitaly Petrov and Nico Hülkenberg claimed their career-best finishes in fifth and sixth respectively, whilst Michael Schumacher was issued a ten-place grid penalty for a dangerous move on former teammate Rubens Barrichello whilst defending tenth late in the race that nearly saw Barrichello crash into the pit wall at high speed.

After a month-long hiatus, unpredictable weather conditions in Belgium made for a difficult race, with teams and drivers having to balance their tyres against forecasted rain that came just after the grid experienced critical tyre wear. Mark Webber took pole once again, but a mistake at the start allowed Lewis Hamilton to sweep through. Rubens Barrichello, celebrating his 300th Grand Prix start, retired on the first lap after carnage at the Bus Stop chicane, whilst Sebastian Vettel earned his second drive-through penalty in as many races after losing control and sideswiping Jenson Button. Hamilton went on to win the race, with Webber second and Robert Kubica third after a late pit error. Elsewhere, Michael Schumacher, Nico Rosberg and Vitaly Petrov all recovered from poor qualifying positions to claim points, with Schumacher and Petrov in particular claiming over a dozen places in the process. Ferrari's hopes of continuing their momentum were ruined when a collision with Barrichello and an early tyre gamble failed to pay off for Alonso, who later spun into the wall.

Teams and drivers

The following teams and drivers compete in the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship.^[53] With the withdrawal of BMW and Toyota, engine diversity in Formula One dropped to a 30-year low, with just four engine producers powering the entire grid, the lowest since 1980.

Team	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	No.	Race Drivers	Rounds	Test/Reserve Driver(s)
Vodafone McLaren Mercedes	McLaren	MP4-25	Mercedes FO 108X	B	1	Jenson Button[54]	1–13	Gary Paffett[55]
					2	Lewis Hamilton[56]	1–13
Mercedes GP Petronas F1 Team	Mercedes	MGP W01	Mercedes FO 108X	B	3	Michael Schumacher[57]	1–13	Nick Heidfeld[58]
					4	Nico Rosberg[53]	1–13
Red Bull Racing	Red Bull	RB6	Renault RS27-2010	B	5	Sebastian Vettel[53]	1–13	Brendon Hartley[59] Daniel Ricciardo[59] David Coulthard[60]
					6	Mark Webber[61]	1–13
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro	Ferrari	F10	Ferrari 056	B	7	Felipe Massa[62]	1–13	Giancarlo Fisichella[63] Luca Badoer[63] Marc Gené[63]
					8	Fernando Alonso[53]	1–13
AT&T Williams	Williams	FW32	Cosworth CA2010	B	9	Rubens Barrichello[64]	1–13	Valtteri Bottas[65]
					10	Nico Hülkenberg[64]	1–13
Renault F1 Team	Renault	R30	Renault RS27-2010	B	11	Robert Kubica[66]	1–13	Ho-Pin Tung[67] Jérôme d'Ambrosio[67] Jan Charouz[67]
					12	Vitaly Petrov[68]	1–13
Force India F1 Team	Force India	VJM03	Mercedes FO 108X	B	14	Adrian Sutil[69]	1–13	Paul di Resta[70]
					15	Vitantonio Liuzzi[69]	1–13
Scuderia Toro Rosso	Toro Rosso	STR5	Ferrari 056	B	16	Sébastien Buemi[71]	1–13	Brendon Hartley[59] Daniel Ricciardo[59] David Coulthard[60]
					17	Jaime Alguersuari[72]	1–13
Lotus Racing	Lotus	T127	Cosworth CA2010	B	18	Jarno Trulli[73]	1–13	Fairuz Fauzy[73]
					19	Heikki Kovalainen[73]	1–13
Hispania Racing F1 Team (HRT)	HRT	F110	Cosworth CA2010	B	20	Karun Chandhok[74]	1–10	Christian Klien[75] Sakon Yamamoto[76]
						Sakon Yamamoto[77]	11–13
					21	Bruno Senna[78]	1–9, 11–13
						Sakon Yamamoto[79]	10
BMW Sauber F1 Team	BMW Sauber	C29	Ferrari 056	B	22	Pedro de la Rosa[53]	1–13	n/a
					23	Kamui Kobayashi[80]	1–13
Virgin Racing	Virgin	VR-01	Cosworth CA2010	B	24	Timo Glock[81]	1–13	Andy Soucek[82] Luiz Razia[83]
					25	Lucas di Grassi[84]	1–13

New entries process

The FIA announced its intention to open up the grid, aiming for a total of 13 teams, and in July 2009 selected three new teams from 15 new applicants, as well as confirming the entry of all 10 existing teams.^[85] The existing F1 teams, under the FOTA organisation, are understood to have agreed a system of technical support to assist new teams. This compromise proposal would involve the supply of parts and design knowledge to the new entrants, but not full customer cars, in return for which the budget cap idea was dropped. ^[86]

The three teams on the entry list released in July 2009 included Campos Meta, a Spanish team led by former driver and GP2 team owner Adrian Campos and Madrid-based sports advertising agency Meta Image; Manor Grand Prix, an F3 team run by John Booth and designer Nick Wirth; and USF1, a team created by former designer Ken Anderson and journalist Peter Windsor.^[87] Following the withdrawal of BMW Sauber, Lotus Racing was accepted to the grid.^[88] Manor became known as Virgin Racing after Richard Branson's Virgin Group purchased naming rights to the team,^[89] while Campos-Meta was reimagined as Hispania Racing after investor José Ramón Carabante purchased the team from Adrian Campos shortly before the first race of the season.^[90] USF1 officially withdrew from the championship in early March, following months of speculation and accusations from whistleblowers that the team had been crippled by mismanagement for months.^[91]

The FIA also had several entry bids from other racing teams including World Series by Renault and Le Mans entrant Epsilon Euskadi,^[92] Dave Richards' highly-successful Prodrive outfit^[93] and Italian touring car team N.Technology^[94] as well as re-imaginings of former teams March,^[95] Brabham,^[95] Lola Cars^[96] and Team Lotus (not to be confused with Lotus Racing).^[97] Other expressions of interest came from Team Superfund, an Austrian outfit to be fronted by former driver Alex Wurz^[98] and myf1dream.com, a team established by fans of the sport and funded by their donations.^[99] Experienced sports car and touring car entrant Ray Mallock Limited had intended to submit an entry bid,^[100] but decided against it following the mid-season political crisis.

Of the most interest to the media was Stefan Grand Prix, created by Zoran Stefanovic and hailed as Serbia's first Formula 1 team.^[101] Stefan claimed to have acquired the remains of Toyota's abandoned TF110 chassis and engine and had access to Toyota Motorsport's former headquarters in Cologne, Germany. After being rejected from the gird, Stefanovic filed a complaint with the European Commission over the entry selection process and then announced his intentions to continue development of the Toyota chassis, re-badged as the Stefan S-01, with the team even going so far as to send equipment to Bahrain, Australia and Malaysia. After several difficulties including the cancellation of a planned test in Portugal when Bridgestone refused to supply tyres,^[102] Stefan attempted to purchase the defunct USF1 entry, but the moves were blocked. Stefan was finally rejected on March 4 when the FIA stated that it was not possible to issue entries so close to the season opener.^[103]

Team changes

• BMW announced on 29 July 2009 their withdrawal from Formula One at the end of the 2009 Formula One season, citing a lack of future viability and sustainability for the Formula One program.^[104] After a failed buy out from Qadbak Investments,^[105] the team was sold back to Peter Sauber.^[106] The FIA officially accepted the team to the 2010 grid under the name BMW Sauber on 3 December, using Ferrari engines after the Toyota withdrawal.^[107][108]
• Toyota withdrew from Formula One on 4 November 2009, due to economic hardship. After announcing they would not sell the team on,^[109] their grid slot went to the Sauber team. Then, Stefan Grand Prix claimed that they had acquired rights to the Toyota Motorsport's former headquarters in Cologne and the TF110 that was renamed Stefan S-01.
• Scuderia Toro Rosso became an independent constructor in 2010, after having their chassis supplied by the Red Bull Technologies design studio for the first years of racing. This had allowed the team to purchase customer chassis, despite the concept being banned by the FIA. This loophole was closed for 2010, meaning that the STR5 2010 car will be the first car Toro Rosso have built on their own, having spent most of 2009 expanding their base of operations in Faenza, Italy to accommodate production facilities.^[110]
• Daimler AG, parent company of Mercedes-Benz, bought a 75.1% controlling stake in the 2009 champions Brawn GP, renaming the team Mercedes Grand Prix.^[111] Mercedes' former 40% stake in the McLaren Group will be purchased back by McLaren, although Mercedes will continue to supply McLaren engines and sponsorship until 2015. Mercedes signed a sponsorship deal with Petronas, with the Malaysian petroleum company ending its association with BMW Sauber, and the team was renamed to Mercedes GP Petronas Formula One Team.^[112]
• Renault had sold Gerard Lopez and his Genii Capital investment company a 75% majority shareholding, in order to secure the teams future. The team will continue to operate under the Renault name and the engine department remains under full Renault ownership.^[113] The deal leaves the possibility for Renault to regain complete ownership once the global economic situation has stabilised.

Driver changes

Changed teams

• Fernando Alonso left Renault to drive for Ferrari in 2010, replacing Kimi Räikkönen who left the team at the end of the 2009 season.^[114] Alonso has signed a three year deal up to the end of 2012, with options for further years.
• Rubens Barrichello moved from Brawn to Williams.^[64]
• Jenson Button joined Lewis Hamilton at McLaren following the failure to negotiate a contract with Mercedes GP, which bought out his 2009 team, Brawn GP.^[115] This will mean that McLaren have signed the two most-recent World Champions, and will have the sport's first double-champion line-up since Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, also driving for McLaren, in 1989.
• Timo Glock officially joined Virgin Racing, after leaving the Toyota Racing team.^[81]
• Kamui Kobayashi, who made his dеbut for the now-defunct Toyota team at the end of 2009 covering for the injured Timo Glock, transferred to the newly-revived Sauber team.^[80]
• Heikki Kovalainen joined the new Lotus Racing team, after leaving McLaren.^[73]
• Robert Kubica left BMW Sauber to drive for Renault in 2010, as a replacement for Alonso.
• Nico Rosberg left Williams at the end of the 2009 season after four years with the team, moving to Mercedes GP.
• Jarno Trulli moved from Toyota to Lotus Racing.^[73]

Entered Formula One

Bruno Senna made his dеbut with the new Hispania team.

Michael Schumacher returned to the sport with Mercedes GP after a 3-year hiatus.

• Karun Chandhok, who placed eighteenth in the 2009 GP2 Series for Ocean Racing Technology, joined former iSport International team-mate Bruno Senna at Hispania Racing. Chandhok is the second Formula One driver from India, after Narain Karthikeyan drove for Jordan Grand Prix in 2005.^[74]
• Lucas di Grassi, who placed third in the 2009 GP2 Series for Racing Engineering, joined Timo Glock at Virgin Racing.^[84]
• Nico Hülkenberg, 2009 GP2 Series champion with ART Grand Prix, made his dеbut in Formula One with Williams, alongside Barrichello.^[64]
• Vitaly Petrov, who placed second in the 2009 GP2 Series, moved from Barwa Addax to partner Robert Kubica at Renault, becoming Russia's first driver in the Formula One World Championship.^[68]
• Bruno Senna, nephew of three-time World Champion Ayrton Senna, joined Hispania Racing in 2010, returning the Senna name to Formula One sixteen years after his uncle's death.^[78]

Exited Formula One

• Giancarlo Fisichella became Ferrari's reserve and test driver in 2010, having left Force India and joined Ferrari towards the end of 2009.^[116] After failing to secure a racing drive, he signed up to take part in the Le Mans Series.^[117]
• Romain Grosjean was unable to secure a contract with Renault, due to Petrov's appointment as Renault's second driver and will compete in the inaugural FIA GT1 World Championship for Matech Competition.
• After failing to secure a race drive, Nick Heidfeld became the reserve driver for Mercedes GP.^[58]
• After a poor 2009 season, Williams driver Kazuki Nakajima was unable to secure a drive for 2010. On February 19, it was confirmed that he would join aspiring Serbian outfit Stefan Grand Prix, despite their lack of an entry to the grid.^[118]
• Kimi Räikkönen is taking a one-year "sabbatical" from Formula One in 2010 after his managers confirmed that negotiations with McLaren officially came to an end.^[119] Räikkönen instead joined the Citroën Junior Team in the 2010 World Rally Championship, driving a Citroën C4 WRC in twelve of the thirteen rounds of the championship.^[120]

Returned to Formula One

• Pedro de la Rosa returned to Formula One driving for the Sauber team,^[121] having previously served as test driver for McLaren. His return ends a three-year absence from racing, his last Grand Prix start being a half-season campaign in 2006.
• Seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher officially joined Mercedes GP on 23 December 2009, ending a three-year hiatus from the sport.^[1] Schumacher had originally intended to make a comeback with Ferrari in 2009 to stand in for the injured Felipe Massa, but was prevented from doing so by a motorcycle accident injury, and the Mercedes contract was not signed until he was given a clean bill of health. Schumacher previously raced for Mercedes in the 1991 World Sportscar Championship.^[1]

Mid-season Changes

• Sakon Yamamoto, who last drove in Formula One for Spyker and tested for Renault, replaced Bruno Senna at Hispania for the British Grand Prix.^[79] He is also currently a test driver for the team and has taken part in Friday practice at the Turkish Grand Prix. The team confirmed that Senna would return to his seat for the German Grand Prix.^[122] Yamamoto then replaced Karun Chandhok at the German Grand Prix, the Hungarian Grand Prix and the Belgian Grand Prix.^[77]
• During the mid-season hiatus, Nick Heidfeld left Mercedes GP to take up a new role with Pirelli as their official test driver ahead of their return to Formula One.^[123]

2010 calendar

On 21 September 2009 the provisional 2010 calendar was issued by the World Motor Sport Council containing 19 races,^[124] followed by a second provisional schedule which had the Abu Dhabi and Brazilian Grands Prix switching dates.^[125] The final calendar was released on December 11, 2009.^[126]

Round	Race Title	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date	Time
					Local	UTC
1	Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain GP	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	14 March	15:00	12:00
2	Qantas Australian Grand Prix	Australian GP	Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne	28 March	17:00	06:00
3	Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix	Malaysian GP	Sepang International Circuit, Kuala Lumpur	4 April	16:00	08:00
4	Chinese Grand Prix	Chinese GP	Shanghai International Circuit	18 April	15:00	07:00
5	Gran Premio de España Telefónica	Spanish GP	Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona	9 May	14:00	12:00
6	Grand Prix de Monaco	Monaco GP	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	16 May	14:00	12:00
7	Turkish Grand Prix	Turkish GP	Istanbul Park	30 May	15:00	12:00
8	Grand Prix du Canada	Canadian GP	Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal	13 June	12:00	16:00
9	Telefónica Grand Prix of Europe	European GP	Valencia Street Circuit	27 June	14:00	12:00
10	Santander British Grand Prix	British GP	Silverstone Circuit	11 July	13:00	12:00
11	Großer Preis Santander von Deutschland	German GP	Hockenheimring	25 July	14:00	12:00
12	Eni Magyar Nagydíj	Hungarian GP	Hungaroring, Budapest	1 August	14:00	12:00
13	Belgian Grand Prix	Belgian GP	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Spa	29 August	14:00	12:00
14	Gran Premio Santander d'Italia	Italian GP	Autodromo Nazionale Monza	12 September	14:00	12:00
15	SingTel Singapore Grand Prix	Singapore GP	Marina Bay Street Circuit	26 September	20:00	12:00
16	Japanese Grand Prix	Japanese GP	Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka	10 October	15:00	06:00
17	Korean Grand Prix	Korean GP	Korean International Circuit, Yeongamâ€	24 October	15:00	06:00
18	Grande Prêmio Petrobras do Brasil	Brazilian GP	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	7 November	14:00	16:00
19	Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Abu Dhabi GP	Yas Marina Circuit	14 November	17:00	13:00

Notes:

† The Korean Grand Prix is subject to the circuit's completion in time.^[124]

Calendar changes

• The Bahrain Grand Prix was run on a new layout. In this configuration, the drivers leave the old circuit shortly after turn four and follow a loop of nearly 900 metres in length, before re-joining the circuit before the old turn five. This increased the overall lap distance from 5.412 km (3.363 mi) to 6.299 km (3.914 mi).^[127] The race will revert to the circuit's original layout from 2011.^[128]
• The British Grand Prix was originally planned to move from Silverstone Circuit to Donington Park in 2010,^[129] but the owners of Donington Park failed to raise the necessary £135 million bond to redevelop the circuit and infrastructure.^[130] After extended negotiations with Bernie Ecclestone, the organisers of Silverstone came to an agreement that will see the British Grand Prix hosted by the circuit for the next seventeen years, utilising the new "Arena" configuration which increases lap distance by 760 metres (0.47 mi).^[131][132]
• The Canadian Grand Prix returned in 2010 after its one-year absence.^[133]
• The Japanese Grand Prix was due to return to Fuji Speedway for 2010, as part of a year-on-year rotation with Suzuka Circuit. However, Fuji's owners Toyota announced that they had abandoned plans for Fuji to hold the race, citing the global recession as the main reason for this.^[134] Suzuka will continue to hold the event in 2010 and in 2011.^[135]
• South Korea is to make its first appearance on the F1 calendar under the name Korean Grand Prix with a race being held at the Korean International Circuit in Yeongam on 24 October (subject to the circuit's completion in time).

Changes

Rule changes

• Refuelling during the race is abolished for the first season since 1993.^[136][137] Despite the resolution over the budget cap and the decision for 2010 to fall back to the 2009 rules, FOTA have expressed interest in a refuelling ban as it represents a way to cut costs.^[138]

The 2010 cars are 20-22cm longer than the 2009 versions because of the larger fuel tank.^[139]

• In order to accommodate the extra teams, the maximum number of cars allowed to take part in a race is increased from 24 to 26 cars.^[140] Formula One Management will offer financial support to all new teams for 2010, in the form of $10m (£6.25m, €6.8m) along with the free transportation of two chassis and 10,000 kg (22,049 lbs) of freight to each race.^[141] The increased number of teams now requires garages to be allocated on an equal basis at each Grand Prix.
• Teams must homologate certain parts of the car, including the driver's survival cell, roll structures, all impact structures and the front and rear wheels,^[142] meaning they cannot be modified over the course of the season without written approval from the FIA on safety or reliability grounds.^[143] The minimum car weight is increased from 605 kg to 620 kg (1,334 lbs to 1,367 lbs) to better accommodate heavier drivers with KERS systems, despite FOTA's agreement not to use the system.^[144]
• The qualifying system will change to accommodate the extra cars: 7 cars will drop out of the first qualifying session, 7 from the second session and 10 cars will challenge for pole in the third session. The third session will now be run in low-fuel configuration due to the refuelling ban,^[145] although these drivers must start the race on the set of tyres used in the third session.^[146] In the event that a tyre is damaged in qualifying, the FIA technical delegate will assess the extent of the damage and may allow the car to switch tyres to a set he deems to be safe.^[142]

The front tyres have changed from 270 mm (11 in) to 245 mm (9.6 in).

• Drivers have eleven sets of tyres over the course of a weekend, reduced from the fourteen sets in 2009.^[146] Three of these sets are for practice only and are returned before the start of qualifying, regardless of whether they are used or not. The front tyres are narrowed from 270 mm (11 in) to 245 mm (9.6 in), in order to improve the balance of grip between the front and rear. Wheel covers and rim heaters have been banned, and tyre blankets are only allowed to act on the tyre's outer surface.^[147]
• A new points system has been ratified for 2010, in response to the increased grid. Since 2003, points had been awarded to the top eight finishers, on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1. The 2010 system awards the top ten classified finishers on a 25-18-15-12-10-8-6-4-2-1 basis.^[146]
• The stewarding system has a fixed pool of stewards to draw from for each race, including former racing drivers, instead of a rotating line-up.^[148] This is to make the stewarding process more transparent, following recent controversies involving the stewards. Previously, stewards were only able to issue twenty-five second penalties for infractions that occurred too late in the race for drivers to receive a normal penalty, but for 2010 they will have the power to hand out twenty-second penalties to drivers who would have received a drive-through penalty and thirty-second penalties to those who would have received a stop-go penalty. A penalty must now be completed within two laps of the issuing rather than the three of previous years.^[142]
• Replacement drivers will be permitted to one day of testing, provided they have not participated in an F1 race in the last two calendar years. This was in response to several drivers in 2009 competing in their début weekend with no experience of their F1 car.^[149] Teams are also allowed to run a replacement driver in the Friday practice sessions.^[147]
• Powered devices that lift any part of the car during the pit-stop have been banned, and to prevent teams from releasing a car into the path of an oncoming driver in pit lane, the crew must wait until the oncoming driver that is within a 25 m (82 ft) zone either side of the pit box has passed.
• The Concorde Agreement, which governs Formula One, was renewed at the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix. Several cost-cutting proposals were included, such as a limit on the number of aerodynamic upgrades permitted over the course of a season and restrictions on the number of team personnel who attend a Grand Prix weekend.^[143] Also included was a Provision that teams will now be able to miss as many as three races before being ejected from the championship, although the FIA will incur some kind of penalty for a missed race.^[150]

Mid-season changes

• A new parc fermé system, trialled in Bahrain, had cars sealed inside a bag within the team garages and monitored by low-resolution cameras, switching to a high-definition output if it sensed movement within the garage. The system was made a permanent procedure for parc ferme from the Australian Grand Prix.^[151]
• Wing mirrors – previously treated as aerodynamic aids instead of for the drivers benefit – may no longer be mounted in the "outboard" position, following concerns about poor visibility which resulted in several cases of accidental blocking in Melbourne. The ban was effective from the Spanish Grand Prix onwards.^[152]
• Following the success of the Canadian Grand Prix, tyre supplier Bridgestone announced its intentions to increase the difference between its compounds for the German Grand Prix, meaning that the teams have to deal with the extremes in the rubber compounds.^[153]
• At the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting in Geneva, on June 23, the rules regarding safety car conditions were clarified following a final-lap incident involving Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso at the Monaco Grand Prix. No car may overtake until it has passed the first safety car line for the first time when the safety car is returning to the pits. However, if the safety car is still deployed at the beginning of the last lap, or is deployed during the last lap, it will enter the pit lane at the end of the lap and the cars will take the chequered flag as normal without overtaking.^[154]
• Any car being driven unnecessarily slowly, erratically, or which is deemed potentially dangerous to other drivers, will be reported to the stewards. This will apply whether any such car is being driven on the track, the pit entry or the pit lane.^[154] In order to avoid coming under the scrutiny of the stewards, a driver must return to the pits within a pre-determined lap time set by the stewards.
• If a sample of fuel is required after a practice session the car concerned must have first been driven back to the pits under its own power.^[154] This was a response to qualifying at the Canadian Grand Prix when Lewis Hamilton stopped on the circuit after his team informed him that he may not have enough fuel left in the tank for the sample to be taken after the session. Although no action was taken against Hamilton, the stewards moved to prevent teams from deliberately doing it in the future.
• Following a minor controversy when Ferrari conducted a "filming day" at Fiorano ahead of the European Grand Prix using a car that included parts to be debuted at the race - which some felt was an attempt to circumvent bans on testing - changes were made to the rulebook that mean teams will be banned from running parts that have not been raced at a filming session or media event.^[155]
• Ferrari and Red Bull were both accused of having front wings that flexed at high speed, pushing them closer to the ground than is allowed. Although no wing ever failed scrutineers' tests, as of the Belgian Grand Prix the test was made more stringent by increasing the load applied to the wings.^[156] Similar changes were made at the Italian Grand Prix to the test of the front section of the floor under the nose (known as the bib).^[157]

Sponsorship changes

• ING originally decided to end its involvement with Formula One at the end of the 2009 season, which included title sponsorship of Renault along with the Australian, Hungarian and Belgian Grands Prix. The company cited the global economic crisis as the reason for its decision not to renew its involvement.^[158] However, the company decided to terminate the sponsorship with Renault early after Renault was found guilty of having fixed the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.
• RBS will also not renew its sponsorship of Williams beyond the end of 2010. RBS will also cancel its trackside sponsorship as of the start of 2010.^[159]
• Virgin Group have bought a 20% stake of Manor Grand Prix and plan to rename the team.^[160] This was confirmed in the entry list released on November 30, with the team being renamed Virgin Racing.
• At the 2009 Italian Grand Prix, Banco Santander announced a five-year deal with Ferrari to become the team's "main" sponsor starting in 2010;^[161] McLaren later announced that their partnership with Banco Santander had been extended although Santander logos are no longer visible on their cars.^[162] Following controversy after a group of doctors alleged that the team's Marlboro branding contained subliminal advertising, Ferrari removed the "barcode" design from their cars ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix, replacing it with a white box which has since been removed.^[163]
• Malaysian oil company Petronas will end its long-running association with BMW Sauber as of 2010, and instead move to Mercedes GP as title sponsor. The team will be known as Mercedes GP Petronas.^[164] The logos of Monster Energy Drink were added to the helmets of Mercedes drivers Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg ahead of the final practice session in Bahrain.
• News network CNN will join Lotus, with their logos appearing on the T127 for the 2010 season.^[165]
• McLaren has announced a partnership deal with Polish Foreign exchange company X-Trade Brokers with XTB logos featuring on the race overalls of drivers Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton, and on the engine cover of the McLaren MP4-25.^[166]
• Renault have agreed a sponsorship deal with DIAC which will feature the company's logo on the side pods of Robert Kubica and Vitaly Petrov's cars from the Australian Grand Prix to the Hungarian Grand Prix. The team will carry the logo of Russian car manufacturer Lada; Russian driver Vitaly Petrov will carry it on his racing overalls,^[167] and they have also begun a sponsorship deal with computer company Hewlett-Packard with the HP logos appearing on the engine cowling of the Renault R30, returning to Formula One for the first time since 2005, when the company sponsored Williams, while Dutch watch brand TW Steel has been confirmed as the first new sponsor of the Renault F1 Team, as the "Official Timing Partner", in a three-year deal running until 2012.
• Hispania were seen in Bahrain carrying the logos of Brazilian telephone provider Embratel and bank Banco Cruzeiro do Sul. The sidepods of the Hispania F110 also carried the names of their drivers, similar in style to the West McLaren-Mercedes livery in countries where tobacco sponsorship was banned between 1997 and 2005.
• After running a blank livery for the first four races of the 2010 season, BMW Sauber announced a deal to carry the logos of the Spanish arm of the Burger King fast food franchise at the Spanish and European Grands Prix.^[168]
• LG Electronics, as well as sponsoring Formula One since 2009, are also sponsoring the Virgin Racing and Lotus Racing teams, and the returning engine supplier Cosworth.^[169] On 23 July, it was revealed that LG Electronics will also sponsor the Red Bull team.^[170]

Safety Car

• The new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG was introduced as the Safety Car for 2010. The SLS AMG is the fastest Formula One safety car in history.^[171]
• Following controversy at the European Grand Prix, the safety car rules were revised ahead of the British Grand Prix. In the event of a safety car deployment, drivers are given a "delta time" - 120% of a standard race lap (i.e. if the standard lap time is one minute, forty seconds, the delta time is two minutes) - a minimum lap time in which to get back to the pits or else be cited for speeding. However, following the Webber-Kovalainen crash in Valencia, several drivers were penalised for breaking the delta time as they had been racing ahead of the accident and the safety car was deployed as they approached the end of the lap; in effect, they had safely completed a lap at racing speeds and pitted at the earliest opportunity. Instead of following the delta time, drivers must slow down to the speed of the safety car from the moment it is deployed, but will be exempt from doing so for the final two hundred metres of the lap. As a result of this, it will prevent drivers from gaining an advantage by pitting at the earliest possible opportunity and emerging ahead of the safety car.^[172]

Results and standings

Grands Prix

Rd.	Grands Prix	Pole position	Fastest lap	Winning driver	Winning constructor	Report
1	Bahrain Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Fernando Alonso	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Report
2	Australian Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Mark Webber	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
3	Malaysian Grand Prix	Mark Webber	Mark Webber	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull-Renault	Report
4	Chinese Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Lewis Hamilton	Jenson Button	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
5	Spanish Grand Prix	Mark Webber	Lewis Hamilton	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	Report
6	Monaco Grand Prix	Mark Webber	Sebastian Vettel	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	Report
7	Turkish Grand Prix	Mark Webber	Vitaly Petrov	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
8	Canadian Grand Prix	Lewis Hamilton	Robert Kubica	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
9	European Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Jenson Button	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull-Renault	Report
10	British Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Fernando Alonso	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	Report
11	German Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Sebastian Vettel	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	Report
12	Hungarian Grand Prix	Sebastian Vettel	Sebastian Vettel	Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	Report
13	Belgian Grand Prix	Mark Webber	Lewis Hamilton	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	Report
14	Italian Grand Prix					Report
15	Singapore Grand Prix					Report
16	Japanese Grand Prix					Report
17	Korean Grand Prix					Report
18	Brazilian Grand Prix					Report
19	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix					Report

Drivers

Pos Driver BHR AUS MAL CHN ESP MON TUR CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR BRA ABU Points 1 Lewis Hamilton 3 6 6 2 14† 5 1 1 2 2 4 Ret 1 182 2 Mark Webber 8 9 2 8 1 1 3 5 Ret 1 6 1 2 179 3 Sebastian Vettel 4 Ret 1 6 3 2 Ret 4 1 7 3 3 15 151 4 Jenson Button 7 1 8 1 5 Ret 2 2 3 4 5 8 Ret 147 5 Fernando Alonso 1 4 13† 4 2 6 8 3 8 14 1 2 Ret 141 6 Felipe Massa 2 3 7 9 6 4 7 15 11 15 2 4 4 109 7 Robert Kubica 11 2 4 5 8 3 6 7 5 Ret 7 Ret 3 104 8 Nico Rosberg 5 5 3 3 13 7 5 6 10 3 8 Ret 6 102 9 Adrian Sutil 12 Ret 5 11 7 8 9 10 6 8 17 Ret 5 45 10 Michael Schumacher 6 10 Ret 10 4 12 4 11 15 9 9 11 7 44 11 Rubens Barrichello 10 8 12 12 9 Ret 14 14 4 5 12 10 Ret 30 12 Kamui Kobayashi Ret Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret 10 Ret 7 6 11 9 8 21 13 Vitaly Petrov Ret Ret Ret 7 11 13† 15 17 14 13 10 5 9 19 14 Vitantonio Liuzzi 9 7 Ret Ret 15† 9 13 9 16 11 16 13 10 13 15 Nico Hülkenberg 14 Ret 10 15 16 Ret 17 13 Ret 10 13 6 14 10 16 Sébastien Buemi 16† Ret 11 Ret Ret 10 16 8 9 12 Ret 12 12 7 17 Pedro de la Rosa Ret 12 DNS Ret Ret Ret 11 Ret 12 Ret 14 7 11 6 18 Jaime Alguersuari 13 11 9 13 10 11 12 12 13 Ret 15 Ret 13 3 19 Heikki Kovalainen 15 13 NC 14 DNS Ret Ret 16 Ret 17 Ret 14 16 0 20 Karun Chandhok Ret 14 15 17 Ret 14† 20† 18 18 19 0 21 Lucas di Grassi Ret Ret 14 Ret 19 Ret 19 19 17 Ret Ret 18 17 0 22 Jarno Trulli 17† DNS 17 Ret 17 15† Ret Ret 21 16 Ret 15 19 0 23 Bruno Senna Ret Ret 16 16 Ret Ret Ret Ret 20 19 17 Ret 0 24 Timo Glock Ret Ret Ret DNS 18 Ret 18 Ret 19 18 18 16 18 0 25 Sakon Yamamoto 20 Ret 19 20 0 Pos Driver BHR AUS MAL CHN ESP MON TUR CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR BRA ABU Points

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Friday test driver (TD) (from 2003 onwards) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Excluded (EX) Did not arrive (DNA) Withdrew entry before the event (WD) Bold - Pole Italics - Fastest lap

^† Drivers did not finish the Grand Prix, but were classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.

Constructors

Pos Constructor Car No. BHR AUS MAL CHN ESP MON TUR CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR BRA ABU Points 1 Red Bull-Renault 5 4 Ret 1 6 3 2 Ret 4 1 7 3 3 15 330 6 8 9 2 8 1 1 3 5 Ret 1 6 1 2 2 McLaren-Mercedes 1 7 1 8 1 5 Ret 2 2 3 4 5 8 Ret 329 2 3 6 6 2 14† 5 1 1 2 2 4 Ret 1 3 Ferrari 7 2 3 7 9 6 4 7 15 11 15 2 4 4 250 8 1 4 13† 4 2 6 8 3 8 14 1 2 Ret 4 Mercedes 3 6 10 Ret 10 4 12 4 11 15 9 9 11 7 146 4 5 5 3 3 13 7 5 6 10 3 8 Ret 6 5 Renault 11 11 2 4 5 8 3 6 7 5 Ret 7 Ret 3 123 12 Ret Ret Ret 7 11 13† 15 17 14 13 10 5 9 6 Force India-Mercedes 14 12 Ret 5 11 7 8 9 10 6 8 17 Ret 5 58 15 9 7 Ret Ret 15† 9 13 9 16 11 16 13 10 7 Williams-Cosworth 9 10 8 12 12 9 Ret 14 14 4 5 12 10 Ret 40 10 14 Ret 10 15 16 Ret 17 13 Ret 10 13 6 14 8 BMW Sauber-Ferrari 22 Ret 12 DNS Ret Ret Ret 11 Ret 12 Ret 14 7 11 27 23 Ret Ret Ret Ret 12 Ret 10 Ret 7 6 11 9 8 9 Toro Rosso-Ferrari 16 16† Ret 11 Ret Ret 10 16 8 9 12 Ret 12 12 10 17 13 11 9 13 10 11 12 12 13 Ret 15 Ret 13 10 Lotus-Cosworth 18 17† DNS 17 Ret 17 15† Ret Ret 21 16 Ret 15 19 0 19 15 13 NC 14 DNS Ret Ret 16 Ret 17 Ret 14 16 11 HRT-Cosworth 20 Ret 14 15 17 Ret 14† 20† 18 18 19 Ret 19 20 0 21 Ret Ret 16 16 Ret Ret Ret Ret 20 20 19 17 Ret 12 Virgin-Cosworth 24 Ret Ret Ret DNS 18 Ret 18 Ret 19 18 18 16 18 0 25 Ret Ret 14 Ret 19 Ret 19 19 17 Ret Ret 18 17 Pos Constructor Car No. BHR AUS MAL CHN ESP MON TUR CAN EUR GBR GER HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN KOR BRA ABU Points

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Friday test driver (TD) (from 2003 onwards) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Excluded (EX) Did not arrive (DNA) Withdrew entry before the event (WD) Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap

^† Drivers did not finish the Grand Prix, but were classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.

References

External links

• The official website of Formula One
• The official website of The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile