Formula One bosses have been accused of getting into bed with the Saudis who 'stole' their own TV rights deal.

W Series, the all-female racing championship, has broken into the Formula One family 15 years after Bernie Ecclestone said that 'women should wear white like all other domestic appliances'.

Lewis Hamilton's future with Mercedes is under increasing threat and the British driver could join Ferrari in 2021. He has one more season with the Silver Arrows on his £40million-a-year deal.

The six-time world champion's clarification follows Italian media reports claiming negotiations with team boss Toto Wolff have broken down over his annual pay demands.

COMMENT - JONATHAN MCEVOY: There are long years when I would have wagered life and limb on Lewis Hamilton ending his career in a Ferrari. But it no longer looks like it will be the case.

Red Bull's 22-year-old star Max Verstappen is convinced that, with the right car, he can become Formula One's world champion in 2020 as he insists rival Lewis Hamilton 'is not God'.

The Shanghai Sports Federation wants the Chinese Grand Prix to be cancelled as the coronavirus death toll continues to rise. The virus has so far killed 500 people.

Mercedes driver Hamilton claimed his sixth world championship last season and is now eyeing Schumacher's record with the Brit approaching the new campaign as the strong favourite.

The British racing star's contact is set to expire at the end of the year, and the six-time world champion has been heavily linked with a move to Ferrari.

They will come face to face when Hamilton, whose contract is due for renewal at the end of the season, returns to work at the Silver Arrows' Northamptonshire factory on Tuesday morning. 

EXCLUSIVE BY JONATHAN McEVOY: F1 bosses are expected to confirm in the next 48 hours that the race in Shanghai will not go ahead due to growing fears over the outbreak.

Although Liberty Media, the sport's owners, left open the possibility of the Chinese GP being rescheduled, the chances of finding a replacement date look remote to non-existent.

Hamilton, whose Mercedes contract is set to expire at the end of the year, had held informal talks about joining Ferrari last year but any move now looks dead in the water.

Formula One star Lando Norris isn't going to follow Lewis Hamilton to Monaco - because he can't afford it. Norris, 20, would rather stay in Surrey than move to the playground of the grid's high-rollers.

INTERVIEW BY JONATHAN SPENCER: Lewis Hamilton heads into the new season as big favourite to claim his seventh world title and draw level with legend Michael Schumacher.

The Chinese Grand Prix could be rescheduled for November as part of a two-day event sandwiched in between the Brazilian and Abu Dhabi races after the original race was postponed.

Sebastian Vettel has fallen ill on the opening day of Formula One testing after posing for group pictures on the starting grid with the other drivers. The four-time champion was due to test Ferrari's new SF1000.

The British Formula One driver, who shared the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award with Lionel Messi on Monday, has been linked with a switch from Mercedes to Ferrari.

Mercedes' reinvention of the steering wheel has been banned just a day after it broke cover. Not that Lewis Hamilton and his boffins will mind because it won't be outlawed until 2021.

JONATHAN SPENCER IN SALZBURG: When we rocked up to the iconic Hangar-7 in a Red Bull themed double-decker party bus, we knew we were in for one special night.

INTERVIEW BY NATHAN SALT: Jenson Button has warned Charles Leclerc that his honeymoon at Ferrari is over and he must now put up a fight with Lewis Hamilton for the title.

The Dutch driver, heading into his seventh season in Formula One, lost control and spun around, going off the track at turn five. He was unharmed in Thursday morning's session in Barcelona.

Lewis Hamilton's decision to get out of the car saw a red flag deployed on the session so that the car and the British driver could be retrieved and taken back to the Mercedes garage before action resumed.

Formula One's most prominent woman, Claire Williams, has criticised the sport's 'disgraceful 19th Century' accusation that her becoming a mother has caused her team's decline.

WILL JEANES IN MARRAKESH: Felipe Massa says the future of gas-guzzling Formula One is under threat due to the climate emergency.

The seven teams, which includes Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes, Red Bull and McLaren, are concerned that that FIA's probe does not identify whether Ferrari bent the rules.

JONATHAN MCEVOY: Seven Formula One teams have threatened to take Ferrari and the governing body, the FIA, to court for hushing up a potentially illegal Ferrari engine.

His comments came as the FIA admitted on Thursday they were not convinced last year's Ferrari was always legal, but took no further action because it was too complex to prove.

Nico Rosberg has backed one of Formula One's crop of exciting youngsters to make a breakthrough this season and seize the Formula One title.

EXCLUSIVE BY JONATHAN MCEVOY IN MELBOURNE: Todt has told Formula One's teams he took the decision to strike a settlement with his old team over their allegedly illegal engine.

Pre-season testing has left us with more questions than answers as the new F1 campaign prepares to get underway at the Australian GP. Here are the 10 biggest talking points for the new season.

It is understood that the team member reported symptoms associated with the disease in the Albert Park paddock on Wednesday morning.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY JONATHAN MCEVOY: Bernie Ecclestone does not believe Lewis Hamilton should move to Ferrari and he is happy to reel off why. Ecclestone is enjoying a burger in a regular haunt.

Formula One boss Chase Carey has issued a public apology for the last-minute cancellation of the Australian Grand Prix. It was called off 90 minutes before first practice.

Many drivers are out of contract at the end of the season, including Vettel and his former Red Bull team-mate, and Renault fear Ricciardo could leave for Ferrari if they fail to make significant progress.

Formula One bosses on Wednesday took the first step to save the sport from financial meltdown by bringing forward the summer break from August to now.

EXCLUSIVE BY JONATHAN MCEVOY: Lewis Hamilton's future at Mercedes was cast into doubt when his boss Toto Wolff was absent from a heated conference call intended to save F1.

Silverstone bosses have promised fans a full refund if the British Grand Prix on July 19 is called off. The first seven races of the F1 season have been cancelled over coronavirus pandemic.

Max Verstappen admitted he is focused on winning the Formula One Championship this year with Red Bull and believes he now has the experience to do so. 

Daniel Ricciardo reveals he is still benefitting from a good training regime despite coronavirus disrupting plans for the 2020 Formula One calendar. 

The boss of the British Grand Prix has told Formula One's owners that he needs to know by the middle of next month whether the showpiece event is going ahead on July 19.

EXCLUSIVE: Bernie Ecclestone is locked down at his coffee farm in Brazil. At 490 acres it is literally the size of Monaco, and, with coronavirus lurking, staff living on site go out a couple at a time to shop.

Eight rounds have been postponed, and more look likely to follow with countries in lockdown, but F1 bosses have said they hope to get back on track some time in the European summer.

Formula One have banned teams from developing their cars in line for the 2022 season when a revamp of rules and regulations are set to kickstart a new era for the sport.

The rules which would have effectively started a new era for F1 by pushing the reset button were set to come into force for 2021 before the coronavirus pushed their introduction back a year to save costs.

Formula One and Silverstone admit they have until the end of April before they find out if the British Grand Prix could be held this year.

Formula One is in a 'very fragile state' as a result of the coronavirus crisis and needs big changes to survive, says McLaren boss Zak Brown. 

England cricket star Ben Stokes endured a tough time behind the wheel in the second Formula One Essports Virtual Grand Prix.

The reigning Formula One champion is waiting to agree terms over a new contract with Mercedes, with his current £40million-a-year deal expiring at the end of this season.

Carey's salary figure is a guarded secret but it is thought to be several million pounds a year. The London -based company have put half of their 500 F1 staff on furlough this week, it can be revealed.