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Ferrari

Ferrari World previewed in Abu Dhabi

Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi

That Maranello red elephant in the desert is close to opening in Abu Dhabi. Otherwise known as Ferrari World, the theme park was given a press preview last week. At over 200,000 square metres this is one big park. Inside you’ll see all the expected Ferrari guff, as well as a few roller coasters and the like.

The official opening to the public has been delayed until 4 November as mark of respect to the passing of Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi, Emir of Ras al-Khaimah, one of the United Arab Emirates.

Ferrai World expect the visitor split will be 60:40 in favour local residents to tourists. Being placed alongside the Yas Marina Grand Prix track will certainly help boost overseas tourist numbers. Ticket prices range from AED165 ($45) and go right up to AED375 ($105) which includes priority access for all rides.

Will this ambitious project become a roaring success, or is it going to be a massive failure? Tell us what you think. There’s a couple of videos and a few pics after the break to help you make up your mind.

More information is available at the official Ferrari World Abu Dhabi website.

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Ferrari

Another Ferrari 458 Italia photoshoot

Ferrari 458 Italia

While over at Winding Road reading about Jack Brabham we also came across this great image gallery of the Ferrari 458 Italia. The pics were taken by Chris Amos and they’re bloody good too. Amos has captured just about every visual detail you could hope for. Follow the source link below for more.

This is the second 458 photoshoot we have linked to this month. If you missed the first one, check it out here.

[Source: Winding Road]

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Ferrari Formula 1 Lotus McLaren Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing Renault

2010 Korean Grand Prix in pictures

2010 Korean Grand Prix

“Our Mark” binned it! Can you believe it. It was a race that promised so much; an opportunity for Webber to really intensify the pressure on his rivals. Instead, on a dramatic and soaking wet afternoon in Yeongam, Mark put it into the wall and he walked away empty handed. Pressure does strange things and amplifies the tiniest of indiscretions. It was a mistake that needn’t have happened. Webber cracked on Sunday.

Worse, it looked like his fiercest rival, Sebastien Vettel, was going to rub his nose in it with a comfortable victory. A win that would have put the young German 11 points ahead of Webber and the shift in power across the garage would likely have been irreversible. For Mark, at least, fate dealt a helping hand when a dominant Vettel was robbed of certain victory after his Renault engine disintegrated with no apparent warning.

Only too happy to watch the imploding Red Bulls ahead of him Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was there to pick up the pieces. He drove solidly and mostly kept himself out of trouble, despite the woeful light conditions towards the end of the race. Amazingly, he now finds himself 11 points ahead of Webber in the drivers’ title race. A few weeks back he was the fifth man in the chasing pack.

With just two more races to go, can Fernando hold off the inevitable challenge from those closest behind? Brazil is next and Webber is the defending race winner. How he would love an encore performance in two weeks time.

For now, though, catch up on all the drama from last weekend with 80 pics from the inaugural Korean Grand Prix.

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Ferrari Formula 1 McLaren

2010 Korean GP – Post-race press conference

2010 Korean Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso has capped off an amazing run of form by taking home all the spoils after a dramatic Korean Grand Prix. The Ferrari man has now won three out of the last four races to charge to an 11 point lead in the World Drivers’ Championship standings. Thanks, in part, to a costly blunder from Mark Webber today, who crashed out of the race early in proceedings.

Going in to the Italian Grand Prix, seven weeks ago, Lewis Hamilton was leading the world championship and Alonso was a distant 41 points behind. How quickly things can change. There’s just two races left in season 2010 and, as the great Murray Walker says, anything can happen Formula One, and it usually does!

Read what the three guys on the podium had to say after the race and stay tuned for more pics and commentary soon.

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Ferrari

Ferrari 458 Challenge testing at Monza

Ferrari 458 Challenge

Back in August we saw a Ferrari 458 Challenge test mule in action at Fiorano. Now a new video has emerged showing the car being tested at Monza. What’s not to like?! Take the jump and watch the clip now.

[Thanks to Richard for the tip]

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Ferrari Formula 1 Lotus McLaren Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing

2010 Japanese Grand Prix in pictures

2010 Japanese GP

Formula One action was all go on Sunday in Suzuka. Thanks to the rained out qualifying session the day before racegoers got to see a full qualifying session and a race all in the one day. What they saw was an unassailable Sebastian Vettel who topped all three quali sessions and led the race virtually from start to finish.

Our boy Mark Webber maintained his championship lead with a solid second place. The Red Bull duo still can’t shake of a persistent Ferrari challenge from Fernando Alonso, who also finished on the podium. McLaren’s Jenson Button was fourth, able to take advantage of more frustration for Lewis Hamilton; this time in the form of another dodgy gearbox.

However, aside from Sebastian and Mark, this race was all about fighting for the scraps. A couple of brain farts at the start ensured there were a few more scraps too, with Virgin Racing’s Lucas di Grassi reportedly crashing on the warm up lap. Vitaly Petrov made a mess of his Renault at the start—that’s him above, on the grass with half his car missing. And Felipe Massa continued to flounder by barely making it into the first corner. It’s a shame the latter two took some Force India and Williams collateral damage with them, too.

Local lad Kamui Kobayashi in his Sauber went on a late charge and provided plenty of entertainment and loads of heart-in-mouth overtaking moves. He made them all stick, though, and continues to show he has raw pace by the bucketful.

Relive the race for yourself by checking out our gallery below, with thanks to the F1 teams who offer great access to some fantastic photography.

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Ferrari Formula 1 Red Bull Racing

2010 Japanese GP – Post-race press conference

2010 Japanese Grand Prix

Red Bull Racing returned to the victory dais at Suzuka today with Sebastian Vettel claiming his third race win of the year. Constantly at the top of the time sheets, Vettel was the dominant man all weekend and started the race from pole position. Teammate Mark Webber completed the Red Bull Racing domination by securing an comfortable looking second place. Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso took the final podium position.

With three races to go the title race now looks set to be a race between Webber, Vettel and Alonso. A solid haul of points saw Webber slightly extend his championship lead this weekend. He is now on 220pts, with both Alonso and Vettel close behind on 206pts.

The full post-race press conference transcript is available below.

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Ferrari Formula 1 Lotus McLaren Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing Renault

Japanese GP qualifying washed out

2010 Japanese Grand Prix

It would be out of the ordinary for AUSmotive to feature an image gallery on a Grand Prix weekend before the race had been run. It would be out of the ordinary for qualifying to be cancelled due to heavy and persistent rain. But these extraordinary events have happened today, and when you see the pictures, mostly taken during this morning’s Free Practice 3 session, you will see why.

Heavy rain started to fall this morning at the Suzuka circuit and barely abated all day. Despite several delays to allow conditions to improve qualifying was eventually called off and is now scheduled to be run tomorrow morning at 10am Japan time (midday AEDT). The race will go ahead as scheduled at 3pm (5pm AEDT). Weather conditions are expected to improve.

As well as the pics below you can also read the concise and somewhat humourous qualifying report from Lotus Racing.

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Ferrari

Ferrari 458 Italia photoshoot

Ferrari 458 Italia

The wonderful Ferrari 458 Italia is a beautiful looking car. Especially before it has burnt to a crisp. Little wonder, then, that the 458 is the subject a new photoshoot over at My Car Portal. Dejan Sokolovski was the clever clogs behind the camera this time. Click the source link below for more.

[Source: My Car Portal]

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Ferrari Formula 1 Lotus McLaren Mercedes-Benz Red Bull Racing Renault

2010 Singapore Grand Prix in pictures

2010 Singapore GP

Fernando added to his Italian Grand Prix win to make it a double with victory in Singapore. By doing so he has put himself right at the pointy end of the driver’s title race; he’s now second. Sebastien set the field alight during practice but faltered during qualifying and played second fiddle to Alonso for the rest of weekend, despite having the faster car. But for a couple of Safety Car periods these guys would have led the field home with a minute to spare, they were streets ahead.

Mark struggled during the weekend and started from fifth, but a pit stop gamble after the first Safety Car period inside five laps saw him claw his way into third place after the lead cars completed their stops. After the second Safety Car period Hamilton, in fourth, made a ballsy move to overtake Mark. It almost came off, too, but there was contact between the two and Webber walked away with the luck, while Hamilton was forced to take an early shower for the second race in a row.

Aside from that, the action was a bit light on, save for a few hit and giggle incidents towards the back of the field. Perhaps the only other aspect of this race worth noting is the ease with which Schumacher gets pushed aside by his peer group these days. It indicates the seven time champion continues to struggle with the pace of current day F1 cars.

Recapture the vibe with over 70 images after the break.

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Ferrari Formula 1 Red Bull Racing

2010 Singapore GP – Post-race press conference

2010 Singapore GP

Fernando Alonso bagged consecutive Grand Prix wins with victory in Singapore. It’s his fourth race win for the year—the same as Mark Webber, third place, who leads the driver’s championship by 11 points from the Ferrari driver.

Sebastien Vettel started and finished the race in second place. He looked the dominant man all during practice and most of qualifying, but Alonso showed he is made of the right stuff, performing when it matters most. It also shows that the F10 Ferrari has the ability to match it with the RB6 Red Bull on both fast and slow circuits. This title race is going down to the wire.

The full transcript from the post-race press conference with the podium winners is available below. A Singapore GP photo gallery should be up later today.

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

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Ferrari

Ferrari SA APERTA revealed ahead of Paris

Ferrari SA APERTA

Ferrari has lifted the lid on its latest 599 incarnation, otherwise known as the SA APERTA. The SA badging is a nod to Sergio and Andrea Pininfarina whose company has strong links with Maranello. Further honouring Pininfarina is the fact the SA APERTA will be limited to just 80 examples, acknowledging the 80th anniversary of the Italian styling house.

In basic terms this car is 599 GTO “Barchetta” and features a 6.0 litre V12 engine. That engine is good for 670PS (500kW). A soft top cover is available, but it sounds like it will be more use for giggles than serious protection.

We’ll see more of this car at the Paris Motor Show in a week or so. Oh, if you would like to buy one of these stunning SA APERTAs, well, you can’t. They have already sold out.

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