Ferrari have signed up 11-year-old Lance Stroll as the youngest member of their driver academy.

Ferrari set up the academy last year to help young drivers progress from karting through to Formula 1.

Stroll, from Montreal, has twice won the Canadian national championship in the Rotax Mini Max category.

"He is very young but he has already shown in karting he is exceptionally talented," said Ferrari's academy head Luca Baldisserri.

"We will follow him step by step in his forthcoming events in North America and he will soon also take part in our courses at Maranello."

Last year, Stroll finished sixth in the World Finals at Lonato in the Mini Roc category and second in the Rotax Micro Max Florida Winter Tour.

In 2008 he was nominated by the Federation Sport Automobile du Quebec as Rookie of the Year and Driver of the Year the following year.

Ferrari are proud to announce that brazilian Felipe Massa will continue to drive for the team until the end of the 2012 season.

Massa started to race for Ferrari in 2006, following a stint at Ferrari-engined Sauber, and over his 69 Grands Prix with the Italian outfit has taken 11 wins, 30 podiums, 15 pole positions, 12 fastest race laps and 360 world championship points.

“I am happy to be given the opportunity to drive for Ferrari for a further two seasons,” said the Brazilian. “Throughout my entire Formula One career, I have always raced with an engine made in Maranello and it is a matter of pride for me to be able to continue working with a team that I regard as a second family.”

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali added: “Felipe has been part of Ferrari for almost a decade and together with us, he has grown as a driver and as a man, going through some very difficult times as well as giving us moments of great happiness. We wanted to show proof of stability for the future, believing in the worth of a driver pairing that is without equal in terms of talent, speed and its ability to work together for the good of the team.”

With Massa’s current team mate Fernando Alonso also contracted until 2012, it means Ferrari will have an unchanged driver line-up for the next two seasons.

Felipe Massa believe he has got on top of the difficulties he was experiencing with the 2010 tyres at the start of the season.

Massa was out-qualified by Fernando Alonso in four of the first five races of the year and often seemed to be off his team mate’s pace.

But in Istanbul he out-qualified Alonso and finished ahead of him on the track. Speaking to the Daily Telegraph he said:
The only thing I have found tough this season is the problems I have had with the tyre temperatures in Australia, China and Spain. But I knew it was a technical problem. In the last race I was back to normal. Ultimately the car is just not good enough.


His struggles led to speculation he would be replaced at Ferrari at the end of the year. But he dismissed the reports saying:
I think sometimes people don’t know what they are talking about. I mean, look, nobody cares about Mark Webber, then he wins two races and all of a sudden he is amazing. Now Sebastian is ‘crumbling under the pressure’.

After two races people change their minds very quickly. The fact is there are lots of drivers who are capable of winning the championship.
Felipe Massa

Fernando Alonso insists he sees no reason why Ferrari can’t repeat development surges from past years and get itself back on the pace of its two main rivals.

The Maranello squad endured a miserable 800th grand prix in Turkey last week and, while its pace was a long way behind Red Bull and McLaren, worryingly for its championship aspirations it also proved slower than Mercedes and Renault.

Team principal Stefano Domenicali acknowledged after its drivers finished seventh and eighth in the race that the recent development parts brought onto the F10 hadn't been good enough and that it needed to adopt the more aggressive approach to upgrades taken by other teams.

And while Alonso remains in touch with the championship leaders in the points standings, the Spaniard admits Ferrari has failed to match the development pace at the front since the start of the European season and must turn the situation around quickly.

“In Istanbul we were not quick enough and we have to react immediately,” he said on his blog on Ferrari’s website.

“The championship is still wide open with everything to play for. I am fourth in the classification, 14 points off the leader and if the old points system still applied, the difference would be just four.

“However, it’s clear we need to make a jump forward in terms of developing the car.

“Over the first four races, we matched the pace of our main rivals, but since we have been back in Europe, that is no longer the case.”

However, the double world champion is upbeat about Ferrari’s chances of getting back on terms with the front two as he says it has shown in the past that it can out-develop the field. 

The former Renault driver had to survive an onslaught from the Maranello squad en-route to his second title in 2006 when, despite having enjoyed a big points lead at mid-season, his fight with Michael Schumacher went down to the final round as Ferrari ended the season with the grid’s quickest car.

“When I was racing against Ferrari, I admired its ability to react, producing probably the best development during the season,” Alonso said.

“The people are the same now, so there is no reason why the same thing cannot happen this year: I trust our team and, above all, I trust in the will to win that every last one of us shares.”

Ferrari has targeted the European Grand Prix at Valencia later this month as the place where it expects to make a big step forward when a significant package of upgrades is introduced onto the F10.

Alonso too has high hopes for Valencia – but is also confident the team will already prove more competitive in Canada next week.

“For Valencia, we will have a major update package which should see us make a good step forward, but I believe that already in Canada, we will have a different situation," he said.

Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro picked up just ten poins at the end of the Turkish Grand Prix. Felipe Massa finished the race in seventh place, right ahead of his team-mate Fernando Alonso. Out in front, it was a one—two for McLaren, with Hamilton ahead of Button, who made the most of a collision between the two Red Bulls, which had been leading,

For Ferrari it was a case of damage limitation, after a very poor qualifying. Today, McLaren and Red Bull were too quick, but our pace was competitive with, if not better than that of Renault and Mercedes, who started ahead of us. Unfortunately, overtaking is always very difficult and risky: Alonso knows it because he had really push on the limit to get the better of Petrov in the final laps.

Now the team needs to work to reduce the performance gap as quickly as possible, compared to the strongest teams, starting with the Canadian Grand Prix.

Stefano: "This was definitely a very poor weekend for us and it’s a shame we were unable to celebrate our 800th Grand Prix in a worthy manner. We did not have the performance level we expected and we were definitely inferior to the two teams which dominated the Turkish weekend. We are at the level of the second group of drivers; those who were fighting throughout the Grand Prix, all within a few seconds of one another. But we know what an influence qualifying has on the final result and yesterday we struggled even more than usual in this area. This afternoon, we did what we could: Felipe didn’t make any mistakes and Fernando managed to make up a few places with the pit stop and by passing Petrov. Now we must make a step forward to close the performance gap: our engineers are capable and ready, as they have shown so often and I am sure they will be able to do it again, improving the performance of the F10. We are entering the crucial phase of the championship and we have to do everything to tackle it in the best possible shape."

McLaren scored a one-two finish in the Turkish Grand Prix with Lewis Hamilton leading home Jenson Button.

But the race hinged on a sensational moment when the two Red Bull drivers crashed into each other while leading the race.

Mark Webber led the race from the start and Sebastian Vettel moved up to take second behind him.

Hamilton, who had slipped back to third after starting on the dirty side of the grid, fought back, passing Vettel around the outside of turn three for second place.

Jenson Button had also lost a position at the start, Michael Schumacher passing him for fourth. He used the McLaren’s straight-line speed to swing around the outside of the Mercedes at turn 12.

Hamilton now set about trying to pass Webber, but couldn’t get close enough to make the MP4/25’s superior speed count. Webber pulled away through turn eight on every lap, Hamilton closed back in on the straight, but he couldn’t find a way past.

His job got more difficult when a slow pit stop due to a stuck right-rear tyre allowed Vettel by into second place. Now Red Bull had a one-two on their hands.

At first it looked like the biggest threat to them was an incoming rain shower. This was a surprise as none had been forecast for the race, and in the end the shower slowed down and petered out before it reached the track.

While the teams made preparations to deal with the rain, gradually Vettel began getting closer to Webber. On lap 41 he made his move, puling alongside Webber at the exit of turn 11.

The pair made contact, Vettel bursting his right-rear tyre and spinning off the track. Webber kept going, but with a smashed front wing he had to make a pit stop.

The McLaren drivers could scarcely believe their fortune but Button, now up to second, fancied his chances of a third win. He drew alongside his team mate on the outside of turn 12 and scrambled past.

That left Button on the outside of the last corner and Hamilton used his momentum to get back alongside. The pair touched wheels as they dived into turn one side-by-side and Hamilton seized the lead back.

Afterwards Hamilton said he was surprised to see Button so close to him. Both McLaren drivers were told to save fuel in the closing stages of the race and Hamilton felt that had helped Button:
The target they gave me was perhaps a bit slower than what they meant for me and suddenly Jenson was with me.
Lewis Hamilton
After that exchange Button never troubled Hamilton again.

The two front running teams had left their rivals so far behind that Webber was able to collect third place even after his extra pit stop.
The two Mercedes were behind him, Schumacher ahead of Rosberg.

Robert Kubica was close behind Rosberg having kept Felipe Massa’s Ferrari behind all race.

Vitaly Petrov defended his eighth place from Fernando Alonso for many laps but Alonso finally forced his way through in the dying stages of the race.

The pair made contact and Petrov’s car was damaged, forcing him to make a pit stops and costing him a points finish. Nonetheless Petrov set the fastest lap on his final tour.

That promoted Adrian Sutil to ninth and Kamui Kobayashi into tenth, scoring his and Sauber’s first points of the year.

Eight cars finished out of the points with both Lotuses and HRTs the only retirements, along with Vettel.

Hamilton’s first win of the season moves him up to third place, nine points behind Webber. Vettel, who jointly led the championship heading into this race, falls to fifth.

Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel was quickest in the final practice session for the Turkish Grand Prix.

The German set a time of one minute 27.086 seconds, 0.273secs clear of Mercedes's Nico Rosberg in second.

Alonso was sixth fastest with fellow Ferrari driver Felipe Massa, who has won in Turkey on three consecutive occasions, ninth. Pressure is on the brazilian to beat Alonso, especially on Felipe's most favourite track.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton was third quickest with the other Red Bull of Mark Webber fourth fastest.

Vettel, Webber, Hamilton and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso all lost control on the Istanbul Park track as they tested their cars' limits before qualifying.

Hamilton's spin off Turn Eight was the most spectacular and the 2008 champion had to return to the pits to replace his damaged tyres.

Webber, who was also pushing his Red Bull hard on the Turkish circuit, suffered problems with his throttle earlier in the session and had to coast into the pits for repairs.

But despite those problems and veering off the track on occasions, the Australian joint leader of the championship returned to post a quick time.

His team-mate Vettel, who shares the lead, will go into qualifying later on Saturday looking for his seventh straight pole position.

The German set the quickest time late in the practice session, closely followed by compatriot Rosberg who sneaked in a fast lap and trumped his Mercedes team-mate Michael Schumacher, who was seventh.

Robert Kubica impressed in the Renault to claim the fifth fastest time with his team-mate Vitaly Petrov, who also lost control in the session, 10th quickest.

A decision on Formula 1's 2011 tyre supply is likely before the end of the Turkish Grand Prix weekend, according to F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

It is believed that Pirelli - which last competed in F1 in 1990 - has become the front-runner for the deal to replace Bridgestone as the world championship's control tyre maker.

But Ecclestone said no decision had been made as yet.

"It could be Michelin or Pirelli, or Avon - there are a lot of people out there," he told reporters in the Istanbul Park press room.

"It is more people than [two]."

Despite this, he is optimistic that an announcement is not far away.

"I hope so, yeah," Ecclestone replied when asked if a deal could be done in Turkey.

"I hope we'll have something a bit more firm by the time we leave here."

Designers have warned that they need details of the 2011 tyres imminently or they will fall behind with their work on next year's cars.

Ecclestone said the reason the decision had been delayed was purely because so many parties were involved in making the choice.

McLaren's Jenson Button just beat Red Bull's Mark Webber to the fastest time in practice at the Turkish Grand Prix.

The world champion's lap of one minute 28.280 seconds was just 0.098secs ahead of the Australian, whose team-mate Sebastian Vettel was third fastest.

Webber, the world championship leader, suffered a suspected engine failure towards the end of the session.

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton led after the first session, but ended fourth while Ferrari's Fernando Alonso was fifth.

Alonso completed a congested top five, just half-a-second behind Button, prompting Ferrari's chief engineer Chris Dyer to tweet via Twitter: "All in all a reasonable session for us. I believe we can be competitive both in qualifying and in the race."

And Button said he, too, was optimistic of a strong race on Sunday, although he warned that challenging Red Bull would be difficult.

"Our car works well round here," said the 30-year-old.

"There are a few small things I want to sort out, but I'm reasonably happy with the balance and both tyres are working well.

"But we are still trying to chase Red Bull, who are yet to show their hand here, so don't get too excited by our pace.

"It was a normal Friday and important to get as much information and learn about the car because you don't catch up one second over a couple of weeks.

"The Red Bulls are still the cars to beat and we've got to hope we can get everything together in qualifying

"On Saturday we'll see Red Bull's true pace. We've got to hope for something better, let's hope we can challenge them, but it's going to be difficult."

Nico Rosberg outperformed his Mercedes team-mate Michael Schumacher as the Germans finished sixth and seventh.

A number of drivers had problems at the triple-apex Turn Eight during the two 90-minute free practice sessions.

All the drivers struggled to cope with debris and dust on the racing line in the morning session, but as speeds increased in the afternoon practice, so too did the spin-offs.

Force India's Adrian Sutil walked away from a crash into the barriers at the end of session one but with his car patched up, returned to complete 16 laps in the afternoon and post the 11th quickest time.

Ferrari's Felipe Massa, who has won three of the five Formula 1 races held in Turkey, also left the track at the notoriously difficult corner on three occasions.

The third exit was the most costly for the Brazilian who destroyed one of the softer option tyres he was using in a bid to post a quick time and he had to settle for 10th fastest overall.

BMW Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi, Renault's Vitaly Petrov and Force India's Vitantonio Liuzzi were also among those caught out by the big left-hander.

Red Bull duo Webber and Vettel experienced few problems through that section of the track as they both clipped more than one second off their morning times to post 1:28.378 and 1:28.590.

However, with the session reaching its climax, Webber's car stopped as it was exiting Turn Two and the Australian was forced to freewheel backwards off the track with wisps of smoke coming out of the engine cover.

Red Bull are not too concerned about the incident, however, as they say the engine was nearing the end of its life.

"Mark's engine was right up at the end of its mileage," said team principal Christian Horner.

"I think it stopped about 50 kilometres short of its target miles, so it doesn't affect his programme."

As Webber's car trundled back to safety, he was involved in a heated exchange with the marshals as the Australian tried to get out of the vehicle.

"I was telling them, just find some common sense," said Webber.

"There is no handbrake on an F1 car, so I was telling them to put something behind the wheel to stop the car rolling back.

"It took them 10 minutes to try and explain that I couldn't stop the car from rolling back. It was a simple thing but frustrating."

The Red Bulls, who were expected to dominate, failed to match the speed of Button though.

The Englishman also eclipsed his morning time by more than one second to move above compatriot Hamilton, who, unusually, posted a slower time in the afternoon.

Ferrari say they are almost certain to retain Felipe Massa alongside Fernando Alonso next season.

Massa has struggled to match Alonso since the Spaniard joined this year. And there has been speculation over Massa's future, with Renault's Robert Kubica and Red Bull's Mark Webber linked with a move to the Italian team.

But asked in a BBC Sport interview whether Ferrari would retain the same driver line-up, team boss Stefano Domenicali said: "Yes, I think so."

Asked if he was sure, he said: "Yes."

Although Domenicali's words are not definitive, his tone and manner in the interview, which is embedded at the top of this story on the internet, give the impression that keeping Massa is the team's strong preference.

BBC Sport understands that as long as Massa can stay respectably close to Alonso in the next few races, the Brazilian will be confirmed in his position for one more year.

Alonso and Massa are third and fifth in the drivers' championship, while Ferrari are 20 points behind Red Bull in the constructors' championship.

Ferrari brought in Alonso to replace Kimi Raikkonen this season and the Spaniard has quickly established himself as the lead driver.
However, the 28-year-old double champion has also made high-profile errors, including a collision at the start of the Australian Grand Prix, jumping the start in China and missing qualifying in Monaco after crashing during practice.

Despite the errors, Alonso is only three points behind Red Bull pair Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel going into this weekend's race in Turkey and Domenicali believes his driver will become "very strong" by the end of the season.

"I don't want to speak about mistakes," added the team principal.
"We are a group and the team do the best with the car and the drivers do the best with the performance.

"I'm very pleased with him. He came into team in a fantastic way and I think that he gave input to the team and I say let's wait until the end of the season. He will be very strong - I have no doubt about that."
Ferrari boss - I convinced Schumacher to return
The Italian boss also backed Massa to shine, starting in Istanbul, saying: "He likes this place a lot.

"Massa was struggling with the hard tyres in certain conditions in the first part of the year, so I think that is the area we need to work with him so he has more confidence in the car.

"It's easy to criticise a driver when he is not performing well, so we need to make sure the package for him is the best." The Turkish race will be Ferrari's 800th grand prix - more than any other team in the history of the sport.