CHESTE, Spain, Jan 22, 2008 (AFP) - A record 35,000 spectators Tuesday turned up to watch Formula One tests by Spain's two-time world champion Fernando Alonso and the drivers of nine other teams.

Managers of the Ricardo Tormo at Cheste, near the eastern city of Valencia, said they had never seen such a crowd for Formula One testing.

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 22, 2008 (AFP) - Motor Racing GP icon Valentino Rossi crashed on the first day of pre-season testing at Malaysia's Sepang circuit on Tuesday, clearly rusty after a long layoff due to injury, organisers said.

VALENCIA, Spain, Jan 21, 2008 (AFP) - Spanish two-time Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso gave Renault's new R28 car its first test run on Monday at the circuit in Valencia in eastern Spain.

ROME, Jan 18, 2008 (AFP) - Motor Racing GP icon Valentino Rossi has been granted a potentially career-changing wish as he bids to win back the world crown he made his own over five consecutive seasons.

LONDON, Jan 18, 2008 (AFP) - Lewis Hamilton illustrated his stature as one of Formula One's foremost talents on Friday when he signed a new five-year contract with McLaren.

The deal ties the 23-year-old Briton to the team until 2012.

'It's fantastic for me the team has extended my contract until 2012,' said Hamilton who has been associated with McLaren since his childhood.

LONG BEACH, California, Jan 16, 2008 (AFP) - US superstar Michael Phelps, gearing up for his multi-medal assault at the Beijing Olympics, swims his first meet of the year this week at the Southern California Grand Grand Prix.

BERLIN, Jan 16, 2008 (AFP) - Germany's Daimler AG's Mercedes plans to extend its stake in Formula One team McLaren to a majority share, Auto Motor und Sport magazine reported on Wednesday which could lead to the departure of the team's long-time boss Ron Dennis.

JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA, Spain, Jan 16, 2008 (AFP) - German Timo Glock set the fastest time in his Toyota on the third day of Formula One testing here on Wednesday as the new Red Bull RB4 of David Coulthard broke down on its debut.

JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA, Spain, Jan 15, 2008 (AFP) - Spain's two-time world champion Fernando Alonso was the fastest driver here on Tuesday on the second day of Formula one testing that marked his return to Renault after a tempestuous season at McLaren.

JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA, Spain, Jan 14, 2008 (AFP) - The Ferraris of world champion Finn Kimi Raikkonen and Brazil's Felipe Massa dominated on the first of three days of Formula One testing in southern Spain here on Monday.

Raikkonen was fastest in the rain at the wheel of the new Ferrari F2008, the 54th version of fire-red Italian team's car.

MUNICH, Germany, Jan 14, 2008 (AFP) - BMW Sauber unveiled their new car for the 2008 season here on Monday, saying their aim was to win their first Grand Grand Prix in this their third season in the Formula One world championship.

ROME, Jan 12, 2008 (AFP) - Italian Loris Capirossi said Saturday that he expects next season's Motor Racing GP title race to be a lot closer than it was last time out.

In 2007, Australian Casey Stoner romped to the title by 125 points, winning 10 of the 18 races.

But Capirossi believes this year the other riders will keep pace with the flying Ducati rider.

MADONNA DI CAMPIGLIO, Italy, Jan 11, 2008 (AFP) - Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher gave his stamp of approval to the new F2008 Ferrari on Friday.

Speaking from Ferrari's joint press event with Ducati here, the now-retired record-breaking driver gave his assessment of the world champions' new car.

MADONNA DI CAMPIGLIO, Italy, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) - It's been a big week for Ferrari with the unveiling of their new F2008 car and a joint Ducati-Ferrari press launch in the snow here.

It's been a time of reflection and forward-planning, with old scars opened up over the spygate scandal but also new seeds of hope planted for the future.

MUMBAI, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) - Italian Giancarlo Fisichella and Adrian Sutil of Germany were on Thursday unveiled as the drivers of the new Force India team that will race in Formula One this year.

COLOGNE, Germany, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) - Toyota unveiled their new TF108 car here on Thursday at the team's pre-season event which also featured drivers Jarno Trulli, Timo Glock and Kamui Kobayashi.

MADONNA DI CAMPIGLIO, Italy, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) - Ferrari pair Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa talked up their 2008 title chances at a joint Ducati-Ferrari press event here on Thursday.

Reigning champion Raikkonen is aiming to keep his feet on the ground and stay motivated in his attempts to win back-to-back titles.

ROME, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) - Ferrari racer Felipe Massa said Thursday that he is hoping to have a bit more luck this season than he did a year ago in his quest to succeed team-mate Kimi Raikkonen as world champion.

The Brazilian finished fourth in the last championship season after some inconsistent displays and mechanical problems cost him vital points.

VIENNA, Jan 10, 2008 (AFP) - Austria's Alexander Wurz will join Honda's Formula One team as test and reserve driver, despite announcing his retirement last October, Honda announced in a statement Thursday.

MADONNA DI CAMPIGLIO, Italy, Jan 9, 2008 (AFP) - Ferarri's new Formula One boss Stefano Domenicali is keen to put last season's spy scandal behind him and look to the future.

MADONNA DI CAMPIGLIO, Italy, Jan 8, 2008 (AFP) - Australian Casey Stoner was in confident mood here on Tuesday as he prepares to defend his world MotoGP title this year.

The 22-year-old Ducati rider injured right shoulder ligaments at the end of November, and, though he did not have an operation, he needed to have a long rest period.

LONDON, Jan 8, 2008 (AFP) - McLaren-Mercedes boss Ron Dennis is set to lower his profile at the Formula One team as the German constructor looks to increase its stake, the Guardian newspaper claimed on Tuesday.

SHANGHAI, Jan 8, 2008 (AFP) - Shanghai's former Formula One racing chief plans to appeal his conviction on embezzlement charges, state media quoted his lawyer as saying.

Yu Zhifei, who helped bring Formula One racing to China, was sentenced last week to four years in jail, becoming the latest casualty of a massive Shanghai corruption scandal.

ROME, Jan 7, 2008 (AFP) - World champion Kimi Raikkonen said he was happy with the new F2008 Ferrari after testing it for the first time Monday at the Fiorano circuit near the team's Maranello base.

Ferrari unveiled their new car on Sunday, before any of their rivals, and it was given its first outing a day later.

STUTTGART, Germany, Jan 7, 2008 (AFP) - McLaren unveiled their new car for the 2008 Formula One season, the MP4-23, which team boss Ron Dennis believed would be competitive in the drivers' and constructors' world championship this year.

MARANELLO, Italy, Jan 6, 2008 (AFP) - Kimi Raikkonen believes that his thrilling, last-gap Formula One triumph in 2007 can provide the platform for a title repeat this season.

MARANELLO, Italy, Jan 6, 2008 (AFP) - World champions Ferrari on Sunday launched their F2008 car for the new Formula One season.

It's the 54th single cock-pit car that the famous Italian manufacturer has launched since first becomming involved in motor-racing and it is codenamed 659 internally.

PARIS, Jan 6, 2008 (AFP) - Lewis Hamilton insists last year's spying scandal and the heavy hand of McLaren team politics have been consigned to history as he takes aim at the 2008 Formula One world title.

MARANELLO, Italy, Jan 5, 2008 (AFP) - World champions Ferrari will jump the gun on their rivals Sunday by launching their new 2008 car here at Maranello.

McLaren, whose two drivers last year missed out on the title each by a single point, will follow suit on Monday at the Mercedes museum in Stuttgart.

SHANGHAI, Jan 3, 2008 (AFP) - The man who helped bring Formula One racing to China was sentenced on Thursday to four years in jail, the latest casualty of a massive Shanghai corruption scandal, state press and a court official said.

BERLIN, Dec 27, 2007 (AFP) - Ralf Schumacher and his Austrian manager Hans Mahr have parted company by mutual agreement after barely a year of working together, it was announced on Thursday.

The 32-year-old, brother of seven-times world champion Michael, has been out of contract since his Toyota contract expired at the end of October.

LONDON, Dec 27, 2007 (AFP) - Lewis Hamilton believes the trauamtic experiences of his debut season in Formula One can help him emerge as a team leader for McLaren.

Hamilton spent most of the campaign embroiled in an increasingly bitter feud with team-mate Fernando Alonso, while his team were caught up in the spy-gate controversy.

REIMS, France, Dec 18, 2007 (AFP) - Formula One star Lewis Hamilton has been banned from driving in France for speeding, a French police spokesman confirmed on Tuesday.

LONDON, Dec 18, 2007 (AFP) - Formula One star Lewis Hamilton has been banned from driving in France for speeding, a spokesman for his McLaren team said Tuesday.

MADRID, Dec 18, 2007 (AFP) - Two-time Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso has said his grandmother had put pressure on him to leave the McLaren team for Renault.

'The person who was most concerned was my grandmother, who told me to get out of there, from McLaren,' he told Cadena Ser radio late Monday.

PARIS, Dec 17, 2007 (AFP) - Espionage, rising stars, bruised egos and multi-million dollar controversies.

They were the tasty ingredients which made the 2007 Formula One world championship compulsive viewing from the first race in March to October's climax.

The title race also proved that Grand GRAND PRIX racing had a future in the post-Michael Schumacher era.

TURIN, Italy, Dec 15, 2007 (AFP) - South Korea's Kim Yu-na captured her second successive Grand GRAND PRIX final title on Saturday but 14-year-old Caroline Zhang showed she will be a force at the 2010 Olympics with a stunning display.

TURIN, Italy, Dec 15, 2007 (AFP) - Results at the ISU Grand GRAND PRIX final here on Saturday:

1. Kim Yu-na (KOREA) 196.83pts, 2. Mao Asada (JAPAN) 191.59, 3. Carolina Kostner (ITALY) 178.93, 4. Caroline Zhang (USA) 176.48, 5. Yujari Nakano (JAPAN) 172.96, 6. Kimmie Meissner (USA) 154.22

Women's (free programme)