THE 2011 PETRONAS MALAYSIAN F1 GRAND PRIX NEWS IN BRIEF

SEPANG, April 11 (Bernama) -- Following are the 2011 Petronas Malaysian
Formula One Grand Prix news in brief:

VETTEL ADMIRES SCHUMACHER
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Few are aware that as a kid, 2010 world champion Sebastian Vettel was a
great admirer of Michael Schumacher.

This 'secret' was out when a school pupil asked him who inspired him to
become a Formula One driver, at the Drivers Presentation before the start of the
race.

Vettel noted that Schumacher was a great driver and he was now Schumacher's
rival in the F1 arena.

HAMILTON AND ALONSO HANDED 20-SECOND TIME PENALTY
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Vodafone McLaren Mercedes driver, Great Britain's Lewis Hamilton and
Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro's Fernando Alonso each had 20 seconds added to their
race time by the Malaysian stewards, following their clash during today's race.

Hamilton was penalised for making more than one change of direction as he
tried to defend his position from Alonso.

The Spaniard, meanwhile, received the same penalty for causing a collision
with Lewis during the fight.

Hamilton's penalty promoted Sauber F1 Team driver, Kamui Kobayashi of Japan
to seventh placing and the Briton dropped to eighth position, while Alonso
retained his sixth position.

TEAM ARE NOT FAST ENOUGH AT THE MOMENT, SAYS ROSS BRAWN
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Mercedes GP Petronas F1 Team principal Ross Brawn said their team were
not fast enough in today's race at the Sepang Circuit, although both drivers did
a great job.

"We had a couple of stints which proved to be a little too long, as we
stayed out to see if the weather might be the opportunity.

"That was our decision and when it didn't rain as had been predicted, we
paid the price with the loss af perhaps a position or two," he said.

Brawn added that the team was strong with good pit stops and the cars were
reliable in very challenging conditions.

SAUBER F1 TEAM CLAIMS THEIR POINTS AFTER A DISAPPOINTING MELBOURNE
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After a disastrous outing in Melbourne, two weeks ago, the Sauber F1 Team
managed to claim four points in the drivers and also the constructors'
championship.

Both team drivers were disqualified from the Australian Grand Prix by
the stewards after reviewing their car in the post-race check.

After the race, it was found that both the cars infringed the technical
rules related to the rear wing of the car.

The team driver, Kamui Kobayashi, of Japan was promoted to seventh position
in today's race after McLaren's Hamilton was penalised with a 20-second penalty.

"I am particularly happy we were able to score our first point...I had some
nice and fair battles with Mark Webber and Michael Schumacher, which I enjoyed,"
said Kobayashi.