After 10 laps, Red Bull Racing’s Mark Webber made contact with the wall, but continued without damage – although he was struggling with the softer tyres which had gone through a four-lap qualifying run yesterday.

Following pitstops for Webber and Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, the Spaniard ran wide whilst trying to overtake Vitaly Petrov, but Webber was not close enough to take advantage. Alonso and Webber were then stuck behind cars that had already pitted under the earlier Safety Car period, meaning that Red Bull Racing’s Sabastian Vettel would take the title if positions stayed the same.

Lewis Hamilton was unfortunate to end up behind Robert Kubica and Kamui Kobayashi following his pit stop, although Sebastian Vettel was lucky to come out inches ahead of the kamikaze Kobayasi.

On lap 32 Lewis Hamilton reported that he needed another pitstop due to the wear on the front left tyre, however, his team refused this request. We later found out that Hamilton damaged his tyres through locked braking.

Lap 40 saw leader Jenson Button pit and return to the race in fourth behind Vettel, Kubica and Hamilton. McLaren’s gamble didn’t pay off.

Renault F1’s Robert Kubica finally pitted on lap 45. A quick stop saw the Pole re-join the race ahead of his team mate, meaning Alonso would need to overtake Petrov, Kubica and Hulkenberg to win the 2010 Wordl Championship.

A spectacular rear wing failure for the Lotus Racing of Jarno Trulli on lap 54 saw Lotus Racing’s season end prematurely.

But it was Sebastian Vettel who would come home in first place to take home the championship – and in the process become the youngest World Champion in Formula One history. The German was in tears as he celebrated over the radio with his team.

Fernando Alonso, meanwhile, gesticulated at Petrov for costing him the championship. The Russian did nothing wrong and was entitled to hold track position. It was for Alonso to overtake, which he failed to do.

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Sebastian Vettel will be the happiest of the quartet, having stuck his Red Bull on pole, yet again. The question will be whether the fragile Red Bull will last the pace. Lewis Hamilton also has reason to be happy as his title rivals have faster cars based on recent form and the front row of the grid is, therefore, a good performance. Championship leader Fernando Alonso won’t be too unhappy with third, given his points lead over Vettel and Hamilton. Mark Webber, however, could only manage fifth place on the grid which, as Alonso’s closest rival, means he will face an uphill struggle to win this year’s World Drivers’ Championship.

Saturday, 13th November 2010. Yas Marina, Abu Dhabi.

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Dr. Vijay Mallya - Force India Owner

Autosport have published an interview with Force India’s CEO Otmar Szafnauer. In it, Szafnauer reveals that Force India have got a spare seat for the 2011 season:The rest of this story can be read at www.nealonf1.com

Ferrari's Maranello Base

The 2007 “spy-gate” scandal, which saw McLaren thrown out of the Formula One World Championship and fined $100m, following the collusion between Ferrari’s Nigel Stepney and McLaren’s Mike Coughlan.

Part of the scandal involved a mysterious white powder that was allegedly found in the fuel tank of Kimi Raikkonen‘s Ferrari. It has been alleged that Nigel Stepney planted it there as part of a sabotage attempt.

The court case over this issue has now taken place and Nigel Stepney has been given a 20 month sentence and £500 fine. Despite not pleading guilty, it is believed that Stepney entered a plea bargain, and that under Italian law he will not serve his jail term.