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The race was postponed because of civil unrest in the country and the season will now begin a fortnight later in Australia on 27 March.

"I don't think the extra two weeks will make a huge difference," Red Bull driver Webber told BBC Sport.

"It's the same for everybody. We are always prepared to race in two weeks."

The Formula 1 teams were due to complete their winter testing at Bahrain's Sakhir Circuit between 3-6 March before taking part in the race meeting over the following weekend.

However, the race was called off on Monday by Bahrain's Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa so the country could focus on its "national interest".

The sport's governing body the FIA supported the decision to postpone the Bahrain Grand Prix, adding that it could still be rescheduled later in the year.

The teams have agreed to return for a second test at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya on 8-10 March before opening their campaigns at in Australia, which hosted the season-opener between 1996-2005 and again from 2007-2009.

"The freight will still have to leave for Melbourne pretty early," added Webber. "I suppose you've got another 10 days' headroom, but it is swings and roundabouts."

BBC F1 commentator Martin Brundle agreed that most teams' programmes would not be disrupted by the delayed start to the season.

"Drivers have a mindset that if there's a race on you go racing, if there's not, you don't," said Brundle.

"There were 19 events last year and there will be 19 this year by the looks of it. It's not like we're short of grands prix this year."

Holding the final test session and the first race of 2011 on the same circuit at Bahrain might have helped teams to set up their car and gain an increased insight into tyre performance.

However, there are some Formula 1 insiders who believe that the delay could actually help some teams who now have extra time before the season starts.

There is an unexpected opportunity to develop the cars at the teams' factories and to make sure any significant upgrades are now ready for the first race.

Brundle commented: "It will help some teams that were struggling to make fast and reliable cars. It will play into their hands."

The extra time could be important to teams such as McLaren, Renault, Mercedes and Team Lotus whose testing has been hindered by reliability problems.

At the second test in Jerez, where McLaren debuted their 2011 car, the team were let down by a lack of spare parts while hydraulic problems halted Jenson Button's progress in Barcelona.

Lewis Hamilton was also hindered by technical issues and the team are yet to complete a full race simulation.

The 26-year-old did manage to clock 107 laps in sporadic runs on Monday but Hamilton finished 1.378 seconds off Felipe Massa's pacesetting time for Ferrari.

After two days at the wheel in Barcelona, Button had said: "I still don't know where we stand."

McLaren are understood to be working hard on upgrading their exhaust package at their technology centre and extra time to do just that might help them close the perceived gap on pacesetters Red Bull and Ferrari.

Renault lost valuable time in Barcelona because of problems with the kinetic energy recovery device (Kers), which makes its return in 2011.

Waiting to start the season in Melbourne could arguably also benefit Mercedes after an inconsistent showing from the German team in testing while Team Lotus, who are hoping to chase down the midfield runners in their second season, had to cut short their test when a recurring radiator leak resulted in Jarno Trulli crunching into the tyre wall.

After three pre-season tests, Red Bull and Ferrari have emerged as the teams to watch from a field of 12. Both have hit the ground running in terms of reliability and have been around the top of the timings as well as successfully completing race and qualifying simulations.

F1 team insiders also believe the Red Bull and Ferrari cars have worked efficiently regardless of how much fuel they had onboard.

However the delayed start of the season could see rival teams feverishly try to make up lost ground.

Webber was cautious about saying how far Red Bull, who won both titles in 2010, are ahead of their competitors.

"Not very," he added with a grimace. "We are burying ourselves in there. We've still got work to do.

"It would be nice to go racing as soon as possible to see where we are."

Labels: Bahrain, cancellation, Teams, Webber

Red Bull's Mark Webber went to lunch at the head of the field on the final day of testing at Barcelona.

The RB7 has looked impressive all week, so it was no surprise when Webber clocked a 1:23.442 to take the top spot ahead of early pacesetter Sebastien Buemi.

Just like team-mate Sebastian Vettel on Saturday, Webber set his hot lap on the first attempt of a two-lap, qualifying-style run, with a drop off of nearly one second as the tyres degraded on the second lap.

Pastor Maldonado was third fastest in the Williams ahead of Adrian Sutil in the Force India.

Lotus brought an early end to its test when Jarno Trulli crashed heavily at turn nine. A problem with the car speared him off the track and due to a lack of spares the team decided to pack up and head home.

"Unfortunately the day was cut short due to the accident Jarno suffered this morning at turn nine," chief operating officer Mike Gascoyne said. "It was not his fault - it was caused by a car failure and we were missing a part we needed to put the car back together which meant we had to cut day four short."

Despite the ignominious end, Trulli said he was happy with the car's performance so far.

"It's obviously disappointing to have the test cut short like this but these things happen in motor racing," he said. We started the day well and until the accident happened I had picked up where I left off yesterday - the car has good balance, pace we can build on and has the potential to help us take the fight to the midfield, so I'm leaving here feeling confident about the season ahead and am looking forward to the next test, wherever that will be."

Meanwhile, McLaren appeared to make progress with the reliability of the MP4-26 and Lewis Hamilton racked up an impressive 66 laps in the morning. That tally was only matched by Felipe Massa in the Ferrari, as both concentrated on long runs over headline times.

Renault had problems with its KERS unit, keeping Nick Heidfeld in the garage for much of the morning and restricting him to just 22 laps. It is hoping for more extensive running in the afternoon.

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Labels: fastest, final, Morning, Webber

Questions are also increasingly being asked of the FIA’s leadership. As of Sunday night the sport’s governing body had yet to make a single official statement on the crisis.

Following last week’s violence in the island kingdom, there were encouraging signs over the weekend as the army and police withdrew from Bahrain’s capital city Manama and pro-democracy protesters were allowed back into Pearl Square.

However, the overwhelming feeling within F1 — certainly from teams, sponsors and drivers — remains that it would be inappropriate to go racing just weeks after people have died and the country is attempting to build a new political consensus.

“When you hear of people losing their lives, this is a tragedy,” said Red Bull’s Webber following practice in Barcelona on Sunday. “It’s probably not the best time to go there for a sporting event. They have bigger things, bigger priorities.”

Meanwhile the warnings against “non-essential” travel issued by many governments, including the United Kingdom’s, remain in place. It seems, however, that no one wants to make the call.

Although there have been whispers that teams and drivers might boycott a race, publicly they have pledged to abide by the decision made by Formula One chief executive Bernie Ecclestone and the FIA.

There are commercial implications at play here with teams contractually obliged to turn up if the commercial rights holder stages a race.

Ecclestone repeated yesterday what he told Telegraph Sport last Tuesday, that he would leave the final decision to Bahrain’s crown prince, Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifah.

“He will decide whether it’s safe for us to be there,” Ecclestone said.

Privately, it is accepted that security is not Ecclestone’s only concern. It could prove costly to cancel the race if the Bahrainis are adamant they can stage it safely. Bahrain is thought to be paying $40 million for the grand prix, plus $20 million for the privilege of hosting the season opener.

As for the FIA, the silence from Paris has been deafening although the relationship with Bahrain is a particularly sensitive one. The Bahrain royal family has close ties to FIA president Jean Todt.

Sheikh Abdullah Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, the second son of Bahrain’s king, is a FIA World Council member and played a key role in Todt’s election in 2008. Bahrain’s crown prince is also a shareholder in Nicolas Todt’s — Jean Todt’s son’s — ART Grand Prix team.

Within the paddock Bahrain has a stake in McLaren. Its sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat owns 42 per cent of the McLaren Group and 50 per cent of McLaren Automotive, the company’s road car division.

McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton said on Sunday that he hoped the Bahrain race went ahead.

As for the broadcasters, the issue is similarly fraught with ethical and commercial dilemmas.

BBC F1 presenter Jake Humphrey hinted that he might boycott a race when he told his Twitter followers on Sunday: “For those asking. Just because the race goes ahead doesn’t mean the BBC have to be there. We’ll make a call, and I know what mine will be...”

Telegraph Sport understands, however, that the BBC, which paid an estimated £200 million for the rights to F1, will attend the grand prix if it goes ahead.

Complicating the issue is the fact that the final pre-season test is scheduled to be held at Bahrain’s Sakhir track a week before the race, from March 3-6.

“In the end the right decisions will be made,” Webber said. “It’s not a big deal to be honest because there are more things than F1 in Bahrain. Bigger priorities. That is what they want to work on over there, generations of issues.”

Labels: Bahrain, civil, concerns, following, Telegraphcouk, timing, voices, Webber

By Sportsmail Reporter Last updated at 7:27 PM on 20th February 2011

Mark Webber insists the Bahrain Grand Prix should be called off if the political unrest which is gripping the Arab state is not resolved.

The Red Bull driver said: 'When you hear of people losing their lives, this is a tragedy.

'It's probably not the best time to go there for a sporting event. They have bigger things, bigger priorities.

'In the end the right decisions will be made. Maybe it is still the first race, maybe Melbourne is the first race, we don't know.

'It's not a big deal to be honest because there are more things than Formula 1 in Bahrain.

'They have bigger things, bigger priorities and that is what they want to work on over there, generations of issues.

'That's the most important thing for them to sort out and not to worry about Formula 1.'

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone has stated he will leave the decision about whether to call off the season opener to Bahrain's crown prince, Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifah. 

Labels: Bahrain, Bullaposs, called, daily, Grand, should, suggests, Webber

Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone told BBC Sport that the decision whether to hold the race on 13 March would be down to the Gulf state's crown prince.

Webber said: "When you hear of people losing their lives, this is a tragedy.

"It's probably not the best time to go there for a sporting event. They have bigger things, bigger priorities."

Protestors have re-occupied a square in the centre of Bahrain's capital Manama following the decision of the crown prince, Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifah, to withdraw security forces.

In the early hours of Thursday, six people were killed as police cleared Pearl Square, firing live rounds at protestors.

The crown prince, who established the grand prix, has been charged with holding talks with opposition groups over reform in the country.

Opposition figures have said they want political reforms that will lead to a constitutional monarchy.

Some protesters have also called on King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifah, the crown prince's father, to step down.

Webber, who finished third in the drivers' championship in 2010 after leading it for much of the season, is the first major F1 figure to voice concerns about whether it would be right to race in Bahrain in the circumstances.

The Australian, 35, added: "In the end the right decisions will be made. Maybe it is still the first race, maybe Melbourne is the first race, we don't know.

"It's not a big deal to be honest because there are more things than Formula 1 in Bahrain.

"They have bigger things, bigger priorities and that is what they want to work on over there, generations of issues.

"That's the most important thing for them to sort out and not to worry about Formula 1."

Earlier on Sunday, Ecclestone told BBC Sport he felt the crown prince was the right man to make the decision about whether to hold the race.

"He will decide whether it's safe for us to be there," Ecclestone said.

"I've no idea. I'm not there, so I don't know.

"We won't advise people to go unless it's safe."

The 80-year-old said a decision about the event would be made on Tuesday.

Complicating the issue is that the final pre-season test is scheduled to be held at Bahrain's Sakhir track a week before the first race, from 3-6 March.

That would mean many F1 team members being in the country for more than two weeks at a time when the situation is changing by the day.

Teams have already discussed contingency plans amid widespread expectation that the Bahrain test will be cancelled and moved to either Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya, Jerez in south-west Spain or the Portimao track on the Portuguese Algarve.

Labels: Bahrain, doubts, Grand, Sport, voices, Webber

Mark Webber has poured cold water upon Michael Schumacher?s impressive recent testing pace for Mercedes Grand Prix at Jerez, suggesting the German legend?s eye-catching lap times were ?probably just a little show for Germany? and not representative of his true form heading into the F1 2011 campaign.

Following on from a difficult first test in Valencia earlier this month ? when the new Mercedes MGP W02 proved to be neither particularly fast nor reliable ? the Brackley-based outfit on the face of things made a quantum leap forward when the action shifted further south in Spain last week, with Schumacher pacing the field on day two and lapping a close third-quickest on day three with Pirelli?s super-soft rubber to close out the test with the best time of any of the 24 drivers in attendance.

However, given that team-mate Nico Rosberg struggled to reach the same kind of lap times during his two days in the cockpit and that ?Schumi? himself has admitted to being ?slightly concerned? at the car?s lack of speed [see separate story ? click here], Red Bull Racing star Mark Webber wonders if the Jerez performance was in truth little more than a publicity stunt to try to ease the mounting pressure on the team.

?It was probably just a little show for Germany,? the Australian mused. ?The super-soft tyre is much faster, but they only last for one lap ? [and after his fast lap] he was immediately two seconds off the pace once again.?

?I was on a ten-lap run, so I don?t know if you can call that very short,? countered Schumacher, dismissing suggestions that he had barely a thimble-full of fuel in his car at the time. ?It is also true that we are not the only team to have tried these tyres.?

Schumacher?s former team-mate Felipe Massa, however, has sprung to the seven-time world champion?s defence, insisting that it is ?not news? that he was so quick since ?he?s won more than any of us? ? but still speculation persists that the times set by the 42-year-old as well as the headline-stealing efforts of Nick Heidfeld on his testing debut for Lotus Renault GP and Rubens Barrichello for cash-strapped Williams were more about showboating to sponsors than any indicator of genuine potential.

Lotus Renault GP needs to placate its financial backers in the wake of Robert Kubica?s rallying accident, whilst Williams is set to float on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange early next month.

?There are big differences between the different types of tyres,? conceded 2009 F1 World Champion Jenson Button, with Lotus Renault GP reserve driver Bruno Senna ? who tested on Sunday at Jerez ? assessing the difference between the hard compound and the super-soft to be in the region of 1.5 to 1.7 seconds.

Labels: aposjust, Eurosport, Germanyapos, little, Schumacher, Webber, Yahoo