Kobayshi enjoys first F1® test with Ferrari

Former Toyota and Sauber driver Kamui Kobayashi was back behind the wheel of a Formula One car on Monday when he drove a 2010 Ferrari at the Scuderia's Fiorano test track.

The test was in preparation for the Moscow City Racing event in Russia on July 21 in which Kobayashi will demonstrate a Ferrari F10 on the streets of the Russian capital in front on several thousand fans.

The Japanese driver, who joined Ferrari's factory GT team for an assault on the World Endurance Championship (WEC) in March after losing his Sauber seat, was delighted with his brief run in the car.

"The first feeling was one of great happiness," he said. "I raced against this car and I knew how quick it was, so it was very important to get some experience of it.

"Last year's race in Brazil was the last time I drove a Formula 1 car and now I am racing in WEC in a 458 GT and the impressions are completely different. But it wasn't hard to readapt, because in the past, I've driven all sorts of cars and I'm used to change.

"It will be very nice to drive an F1 car again at this event in Moscow and for me it will be a double debut: the first time at the wheel of a Ferrari F1 car in an event and my first visit to the city."

Qualifying - Rosberg claims pole in showery Monaco

Monaco is always about qualifying, and on Saturday afternoon fans enjoyed a real humdinger of a session all the way through as Mercedes' Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton beat the Red Bulls of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber to sew up the front of the grid. But it was close…

In the end Rosberg just shaded his team mate for the second race in succession, to take Mercedes' fourth consecutive pole position, with 1m 13.876s to 1m 13.967s. Vettel's effort to make the front row just failed, with 1m 13.980s, as Webber's best was 1m 14.181s.

Behind them, Lotus's Kimi Raikkonen just pipped Fernando Alonso by two-thousandths of a second, with 1m 14.822s for the Lotus and 1m 14.824s for the Ferrari. Sergio Perez was McLaren's leader in seventh, with 1m 15.138s, as Force India's sole survivor Adrian Sutil took eighth on 1m 15.383s. Jenson Button was ninth in the other McLaren on 1m 15.647s, and Jean-Eric Vergne completed the top 10 after a great run for Toro Rosso on 1m 15.703s.

Drizzle over lunchtime set the scene for two of the best Q1 and Q2 sessions ever as the times rattled on to the screen with the rapidity of machine-gun fire. First one then another driver would go quickest as the conditions improved throughout.

Q2 had started with intermediate tyres, before a wholesale switch to supersofts with five minutes left. Webber set the pace, then Button, Perez, Rosberg, Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg, Raikkonen, Lotus's Romain Grosjean, Raikkonen, Perez, Button, Rosberg, Webber, Grosjean and Webber again took turns, but right at the end Vettel banged in 1m 15.988s to beat Raikkonen's 1m 16.040s as the Finn slipped ahead of the Mercedes duo.

Hulkenberg's 11th place on 1m 18.331s left him as the first runner not to make Q3, followed by Toro Rosso's Daniel Ricciardo on 1m 18.344s, Grosjean on 1m 18.603s, Williams' Valtteri Bottas on 1m 19.077s, the heroic Giedo van der Garde on 1m 19.408s for Caterham, after their best showing in a long while, and Williams' Pastor Maldonado on 1m 21.688s.

Everyone had run on intermediates throughout Q1, as first Van der Garde, then Charles Pic set the pace for Caterham, in turn to be supplanted by Hamilton, Button, Webber, Force India's Paul di Resta, Alonso, Hamilton, Vettel, Sutil, Maldonado, Vergne, Hamilton, Di Resta, Webber, Maldonado, Vettel, Rosberg, Hamilton, Button, Grosjean (courageously, as he had literally just joined in after Lotus had repaired his car) and then, finally, Maldonado with 1m 23.452s.

Poor Di Resta was a victim of circumstance and an apparent team error as the Scot found himself on the wrong tyres at the wrong time, and was the first to fail to make it through to Q2, and thus will start only 17th on 1m 26.322s. Behind him came Pic on 1m 26.633s, Esteban Gutierrez in the second Sauber on 1m 26.917s, and Max Chilton on 1m 27.303s. The latter's Marussia team mate Jules Bianchi got as far as Massenet before his MR02 expired with mechanical failure, so like Felipe Massa whose Ferrari could not be fixed in time following his FP3 shunt, he failed to set a time within the 107 percent requirement. Both, however, are expected to race at the stewards' discretion.

Practice of F1 race - Rosberg and Mercedes on top in Monaco

Monaco resident Nico Rosberg ruled Thursday morning's opening free practice session on the streets of Monte Carlo, pipping Ferrari's Fernando Alonso by just 0.087s as one second covered the first eight cars.

The German lapped his Mercedes in 1m 16.195s, which resisted the Spaniard's best effort of 1m 16.282s. Right at the end Romain Grosjean pushed himself up to third on 1m 16.380s for Lotus, deposing Ferrari's Felipe Massa (1m 16.394s) and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton (1m 16.469s).

Massa caused a minor stir when he cut into the pits across the bows of Marussia's Max Chilton, while Hamilton had a moment when he ran wide at Ste Devote. The biggest incident befell Adrian Sutil, however, who spun his Force India through 270 degrees at the same corner. His rear wing brushed a barrier but he made it back to the pits for checks.

Pastor Maldonado gave Williams' spirits a boost with the sixth-fastest time of 1m 16.993s on a track on which he always goes well, while 2010 and 2012 winner Mark Webber was Red Bull's leader on 1m 17.020s. His team mate, Sebastian Vettel, was only 10th, on 1m 17.380s. Between them were the modified McLarens of Jenson Button and Sergio Perez on 1m 17.129s and 1m 17.378s respectively.

Kimi Raikkonen was down in 11th place for Lotus on 1m 17.509s, chased by the Force India duo of Paul di Resta on 1m 17.548s and Sutil on 1m 17.625s.

Nico Hulkenberg failed to break into the 1m 17s for Sauber, having to be content with 1m 18.193s to head Toro Rosso's Jean-Eric Vergne on 1m 18.454s, team mate Esteban Gutierrez on 1m 18.754s, and Valtteri Bottas on 1m 18.830s in the second Williams.

At the back, Toro Rosso's Daniel Ricciardo set his 1m 19.067s early on before settling down to long-run work, as Giedo van der Garde was again Caterham's leading runner on 1m 19.203s from team mate Charles Pic on 1m 19.438s. Jules Bianchi was 21st for Marussia on 1m 19.773s, after a visit to the escape road at Ste Devote, as team mate Chilton brought up the rear on 1m 20.225s.

Nobody ran Pirelli's supersoft tyres on Thursday morning, and that, combined with the fact that there will be extra rubber laid down during GP2 practice, means that the times should be significantly quicker this afternoon when the teams sample the softer compound.