Formula One legend&nbsp;Michael Schumacher&#39;s Grand Prix-winning Ferrari was sold for US$7.5 million in New York on Thursday.&nbsp;

According to Sotheby, the sale has set an auction record for a&nbsp;modern-era Formula One car. It said that&nbsp;it was the first time that a rare automobile was included in an art auction and the decision appeared popular.

Gregoire Billault, senior Sotheby&#39;s vice president, called it &quot;the very best racing car ever sold at an auction.&quot;

Bidding for the&nbsp;seven-time world champion&#39;s 2001 Ferrari F2001 was high on drama with bidders showing a lot of interest in the car.&nbsp;The sale soared past its&nbsp;pre-sale estimate of US$4 to 5 million at Sotheby&#39;s flagship post-war and contemporary November evening art sale.

On Wednesday, another landmark auction sale was recorded by Christie&#39;s by selling a painting of<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/da-vinci-portrait-of-christ-sells-for-record-4503-mln-in-new-york-24337" target="_blank"> Christ by&nbsp;Leonardo da Vinci for a record US$450.3 million</a>.

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/sports/formula-one-hamilton-eyes-schumacher-record-in-200th-race-19413">Hamilton eyes Schumacher record in 200th race</a> 
 
&nbsp;Michael Schumacher, the German racing legend has not made any public appearances since suffering&nbsp;serious head injuries in a skiing accident in 2013.&nbsp;His record of seven titles and 91 career victories remains unchallenged.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The bid went past its pre-sale estimate of US$4 to 5 million

Formula One legend Michael Schumacher's Grand Prix-winning Ferrari was sold for US$7.5 million in New York on Thursday. According to Sotheby, the sale has set an auction record for a modern-era Formula One car. It said that it was the first time that a rare automobile was included in an art auction and the decision appeared popular. Gregoire Billault, senior Sotheby's vice president, called it "the very best racing car ever sold at an auction." Bidding for the seven-time world champion's 2001 Ferrari F2001 was high on drama with bidders showing a lot of interest in the car. The sale soared past its pre-sale estimate of US$4 to 5 million at Sotheby's flagship post-war and contemporary November evening art sale. On Wednesday, another landmark auction sale was recorded by Christie's by selling a painting of Christ by Leonardo da Vinci for a record US$450.3 million. Also Read: Hamilton eyes Schumacher record in 200th race Michael Schumacher, the German racing legend has not made any public appearances since suffering serious head injuries in a skiing accident in 2013. His record of seven titles and 91 career victories remains unchallenged.

Michael Schumacher's Grand Prix-winning Ferrari sold for US$7.5 million in auction

Attendance at the&nbsp;Singapore&nbsp;Grand Prix rose 19 percent in 2017, underscoring the popularity of the race, whose contract was extended last week for four years.

Overall attendance hit 260,400, higher than the event&#39;s 10-year average, event organiserSingapore&nbsp;GP said in a statement on Sunday. The 2016 edition attracted about 219,000 spectators.

The sport&#39;s first night race marked its 10th anniversary this year and has established itself as one of the most popular and glamorous of Formula One&#39;s events. Last week, the sport and race organisers confirmed that the&nbsp;Singapore&nbsp;Grand Prix would stay on the Formula One calendar until 2021.

Sunday&#39;s race, which was won by Lewis Hamilton, would otherwise have been the last in the city-state.

Overall attendance hit 260,400, higher than the event's 10-year average, event organiser Singapore?GP said in a statement on Sunday. The 2016 edition attracted about 219,000 spectators.

Attendance at the Singapore Grand Prix rose 19 percent in 2017, underscoring the popularity of the race, whose contract was extended last week for four years. Overall attendance hit 260,400, higher than the event's 10-year average, event organiserSingapore GP said in a statement on Sunday. The 2016 edition attracted about 219,000 spectators. The sport's first night race marked its 10th anniversary this year and has established itself as one of the most popular and glamorous of Formula One's events. Last week, the sport and race organisers confirmed that the Singapore Grand Prix would stay on the Formula One calendar until 2021. Sunday's race, which was won by Lewis Hamilton, would otherwise have been the last in the city-state.

Singapore Grand Prix attendance rises 19 per cent in 2017

Three-time world champion Lewis Hamilton will start his 200th Grand Prix in Belgium this weekend, seeking to match German legend Michael Schumacher&#39;s record of 68 pole positions.

With the summer break out of the way, the British driver will be chasing his fifth win of the season as he bids to claw back points on title-race leader, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari.

Back in Europe after spending F1&#39;s now-traditional European summer break in the Caribbean, Hamilton, who gave up third for his Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas in Hungary, lies 14 points behind Vettel.

Hamilton won at Spa in 2015, but was beaten by team-mate and 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg last year and has had mixed results at the famous old sprawling and high-speed circuit.

In 2008, when he won his first title, he was relegated from first to third for cutting a chicane, and he has suffered in other incidents including a collision with Rosberg, that left him with a puncture, in 2014.

Seeking his third Belgian win, Hamilton will be the pre-race favourite to win again but knows that Ferrari have regained the momentum in the title race following their dominant one-two finish led by Vettel in Hungary.

Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff has already warned his squad not to take anything for granted.

&quot;Assumptions are dangerous,&quot; he said. &quot;We have seen too many times already this season that the form book can be rewritten from one weekend to the next.

&quot;So we will be making no assumptions.&quot;

The race may also be affected &ndash;- as often in the past -&ndash; by the capricious micro-climate of the region, which can mean parts of the track are under water in rainfall while others remain dry.

That, for Max Verstappen, may be a bonus as he bids to put a mixed season to date back on the road.&nbsp;

&quot;I just love the track and it&#39;ll be nice seeing so many orange fans in the stands,&quot; said Red Bull&#39;s Belgium-born Dutch driver.

&quot;Spa is my favourite track -- you have to get everything right, but when you get a good lap, it&#39;s very rewarding.&quot;

That could also be said of Ferrari&#39;s second driver Kimi Raikkonen, a four-time Spa winner, who has been confirmed on the team&#39;s roster next year.

&quot;It will not be easy for us, as Mercedes has the horsepower, but we will do what we can and who knows? Let&#39;s see what happens.&quot;

A big crowd is expected to camp out and herald Formula One&#39;s &quot;return to work&quot; from the beach at this weekend&#39;s Belgian Grand Prix where Stoffel Vandoorne will hope to mark his retention by McLaren with a strong showing in front of his home fans.

With the summer break out of the way, the British driver will be chasing his fifth win of the season as he bids to claw back points on title-race leader, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari

Three-time world champion Lewis Hamilton will start his 200th Grand Prix in Belgium this weekend, seeking to match German legend Michael Schumacher's record of 68 pole positions. With the summer break out of the way, the British driver will be chasing his fifth win of the season as he bids to claw back points on title-race leader, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari. Back in Europe after spending F1's now-traditional European summer break in the Caribbean, Hamilton, who gave up third for his Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas in Hungary, lies 14 points behind Vettel. Hamilton won at Spa in 2015, but was beaten by team-mate and 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg last year and has had mixed results at the famous old sprawling and high-speed circuit. In 2008, when he won his first title, he was relegated from first to third for cutting a chicane, and he has suffered in other incidents including a collision with Rosberg, that left him with a puncture, in 2014. Seeking his third Belgian win, Hamilton will be the pre-race favourite to win again but knows that Ferrari have regained the momentum in the title race following their dominant one-two finish led by Vettel in Hungary. Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff has already warned his squad not to take anything for granted. "Assumptions are dangerous," he said. "We have seen too many times already this season that the form book can be rewritten from one weekend to the next. "So we will be making no assumptions." The race may also be affected –- as often in the past -– by the capricious micro-climate of the region, which can mean parts of the track are under water in rainfall while others remain dry. That, for Max Verstappen, may be a bonus as he bids to put a mixed season to date back on the road. "I just love the track and it'll be nice seeing so many orange fans in the stands," said Red Bull's Belgium-born Dutch driver. "Spa is my favourite track -- you have to get everything right, but when you get a good lap, it's very rewarding." That could also be said of Ferrari's second driver Kimi Raikkonen, a four-time Spa winner, who has been confirmed on the team's roster next year. "It will not be easy for us, as Mercedes has the horsepower, but we will do what we can and who knows? Let's see what happens." A big crowd is expected to camp out and herald Formula One's "return to work" from the beach at this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix where Stoffel Vandoorne will hope to mark his retention by McLaren with a strong showing in front of his home fans.

Formula One: Hamilton eyes Schumacher record in 200th race

Nico Rosberg rode his luck to grab pole position for Sunday&#39;s Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton in a prolonged qualifying session punctuated by rainstorms and red flags. 
 
The championship-leading German produced a fastest lap of one minute and 19.965 seconds at the end of a session stretched to nearly two hours by heavy rain and crashes in the hazardous conditions on the twisting Hungaroring circuit on Saturday. 
 
Defending three-time champion Hamilton, who is just one point behind Rosberg after 10 of this year&#39;s 21 races, was 0.143 seconds behind his rival as the pair secured their team&#39;s sixth front-row lockout of the season. 
 
&quot;It was a really challenging qualifying with the changing conditions all the time,&quot; said Rosberg, 31, who six hours later had to survive a meeting with the stewards over his pole lap before he was cleared of any wrongdoing. 
 
&quot;I&#39;ve been feeling really good out there the whole weekend in all conditions. I&#39;m looking forward to the race and the great opportunity tomorrow.&quot; 
 
Hamilton looked to be on course to take pole when on an improved best lap he came across Spaniard Fernando Alonso&#39;s McLaren spinning off the track dangerously in front of him.The Briton had to take evasive action, which cost him time, before Rosberg came round and was able to continue without easing off. 
 
&quot;It was unfortunate with Fernando, but these things happen,&quot; said a stony-faced Hamilton, who has been gnawing away at Rosberg&#39;s lead in the standings and is chasing a third win in succession. 
 
&quot;I did the best I could do and it&#39;s a long race tomorrow so I&#39;ll give it everything I&#39;ve got.&quot; 
 
The two Red Bulls of Daniel Ricciardo, who was also affected by Alonso&#39;s spin, and Dutch teenager Max Verstappen were third and fourth ahead of four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari. 
 
Vettel&#39;s team-mate Kimi Raikkonen was unable to progress from Q2 in the treacherous conditions.Spaniards Carlos Sainz of Toro Rosso and Alonso were sixth and seventh ahead of Briton Jenson Button in the second McLaren, Nico Hulkenberg of Force India and Valtteri Bottas of Williams, who was 10th fastest. 
 
Rosberg&#39;s success brought him his 26th career pole position and his 50th front-row start for a race he has never won.&nbsp; 
 
Heavy rain delayed the start of Q1 by 20 minutes, flooding many parts of the paddock, including television commentary booths.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;It&#39;s pretty hairy out there, there&#39;s a lot of spray and standing water,&quot; said Williams deputy team chief Claire Williams. 
&quot;The most important thing is the safety of our drivers.&quot; 
 
When it did finally get going, there were four red flags in Q1 alone, as the drivers struggled badly. 
 
One of the victims was Swede Marcus Ericsson in his Sauber, slamming into advertising boards in front of a tyre barrier at Turn Ten, and bring another red flag with nine minutes remaining. 
 
Then his team-mate Felipe Nasr crashed. He was unhurt, but like Ericsson, his day was over.&nbsp;Another red flag, the fourth, with five minutes to go ensured a thrilling finale to Q1. 
 
(AFP)

Hamilton tried to evade a spin-off on the track which cost him time before Rosberg came round and was able to continue without easing off

Nico Rosberg rode his luck to grab pole position for Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton in a prolonged qualifying session punctuated by rainstorms and red flags. The championship-leading German produced a fastest lap of one minute and 19.965 seconds at the end of a session stretched to nearly two hours by heavy rain and crashes in the hazardous conditions on the twisting Hungaroring circuit on Saturday. Defending three-time champion Hamilton, who is just one point behind Rosberg after 10 of this year's 21 races, was 0.143 seconds behind his rival as the pair secured their team's sixth front-row lockout of the season. "It was a really challenging qualifying with the changing conditions all the time," said Rosberg, 31, who six hours later had to survive a meeting with the stewards over his pole lap before he was cleared of any wrongdoing. "I've been feeling really good out there the whole weekend in all conditions. I'm looking forward to the race and the great opportunity tomorrow." Hamilton looked to be on course to take pole when on an improved best lap he came across Spaniard Fernando Alonso's McLaren spinning off the track dangerously in front of him.The Briton had to take evasive action, which cost him time, before Rosberg came round and was able to continue without easing off. "It was unfortunate with Fernando, but these things happen," said a stony-faced Hamilton, who has been gnawing away at Rosberg's lead in the standings and is chasing a third win in succession. "I did the best I could do and it's a long race tomorrow so I'll give it everything I've got." The two Red Bulls of Daniel Ricciardo, who was also affected by Alonso's spin, and Dutch teenager Max Verstappen were third and fourth ahead of four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari. Vettel's team-mate Kimi Raikkonen was unable to progress from Q2 in the treacherous conditions.Spaniards Carlos Sainz of Toro Rosso and Alonso were sixth and seventh ahead of Briton Jenson Button in the second McLaren, Nico Hulkenberg of Force India and Valtteri Bottas of Williams, who was 10th fastest. Rosberg's success brought him his 26th career pole position and his 50th front-row start for a race he has never won. Heavy rain delayed the start of Q1 by 20 minutes, flooding many parts of the paddock, including television commentary booths. "It's pretty hairy out there, there's a lot of spray and standing water," said Williams deputy team chief Claire Williams. "The most important thing is the safety of our drivers." When it did finally get going, there were four red flags in Q1 alone, as the drivers struggled badly. One of the victims was Swede Marcus Ericsson in his Sauber, slamming into advertising boards in front of a tyre barrier at Turn Ten, and bring another red flag with nine minutes remaining. Then his team-mate Felipe Nasr crashed. He was unhurt, but like Ericsson, his day was over. Another red flag, the fourth, with five minutes to go ensured a thrilling finale to Q1. (AFP)

Rosberg trumps team-mate Hamiltion to grab pole position for Hungarian Grand Prix

Team chief Maurizio Arrivabene shrugged off suggestions that Ferrari had chosen wrongly by adopting a two-stop strategy for Sunday&rsquo;s Italian Grand Prix with a laugh. 
 
The Italian boss said he was aware of criticism of the team after they finished third and fourth behind the two Mercedes. 
 
&ldquo;I was hearing some comments that maybe one stop was a better strategy,&quot; he said. &ldquo;I just laughed with our engineers about this&hellip; 
 
&ldquo;You have to protect yourself&nbsp;if you go for one stop. We were doing the opposite. &nbsp;We were aggressive. 
 
&ldquo;If we did the same strategy as them, we would be 11 seconds slower than we were &ndash; so, for us, we were on the faster strategy.&rdquo; 
 
Four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Germany came home third six seconds ahead of Finn Kimi Raikkonen, the 2007 champion. 
 
Vettel said: &ldquo;We knew it would be tough against Mercedes and it was, but we did a great job, finished third and fourth, which is the optimum we could get. 
 
&ldquo;We had a different strategy. We had fresher tyres at the end, so it was expected that we would be quicker and catching up, but it was not enough to put them under pressure. 
 
&ldquo;We extracted our best race and it has been a while since that&#39;s been the case.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

Maurizio Arrivabene and his team adopted a two-stop strategy; they finished third and fourth behind the two Mercedes

Team chief Maurizio Arrivabene shrugged off suggestions that Ferrari had chosen wrongly by adopting a two-stop strategy for Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix with a laugh. The Italian boss said he was aware of criticism of the team after they finished third and fourth behind the two Mercedes. “I was hearing some comments that maybe one stop was a better strategy," he said. “I just laughed with our engineers about this… “You have to protect yourself if you go for one stop. We were doing the opposite. We were aggressive. “If we did the same strategy as them, we would be 11 seconds slower than we were – so, for us, we were on the faster strategy.” Four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Germany came home third six seconds ahead of Finn Kimi Raikkonen, the 2007 champion. Vettel said: “We knew it would be tough against Mercedes and it was, but we did a great job, finished third and fourth, which is the optimum we could get. “We had a different strategy. We had fresher tyres at the end, so it was expected that we would be quicker and catching up, but it was not enough to put them under pressure. “We extracted our best race and it has been a while since that's been the case." (AFP)

Ferrari boss laughs off Italian Grand Prix strategy criticism

Defending champion Lewis Hamilton produced a trademark triumph of pace and panache to win Sunday&#39;s Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg and replace him as leader of this year&#39;s world title race. 
 
Hamilton outpaced Rosberg at the start and then controlled the 70 laps with a mixture of speed and flawless judgement in sweltering heat at the Hungaroring circuit. 
 
His victory completed a hat-trick of successes in consecutive races, was his outright record fifth in Hungary, his fifth of the season and the 48th of his career.&nbsp; 
 
Rosberg, who started from pole position, came home second ahead of Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari and Dutch teenager Max Verstappen in the second Red Bull. 
 
Kimi Raikkonen was sixth in the second Ferrari ahead of two-time champion Fernando Alonso of McLaren and Carlos Sainz of Toro Rosso, Valtteri Bottas of Williams and Nico Hulkenberg who was 10th for Force India. 
 
Hamilton&#39;s win increased his points total to 192, six more than Rosberg as Ricciardo moved up to third. 
 
&quot;Awesome race Lewis, mega result,&quot; said his Mercedes engineer on team radio. &quot;Well done mate. Fantastic drive.&quot; 
 
Hamilton responded generously. &quot;As always, thank you guys, so much, for your hard work all weekend. This is a great result for the team,&quot; he said. 
 
(AFP)&nbsp; 
 
&nbsp;

His victory completed a hat-trick of successes in consecutive races, was his outright record fifth in Hungary and the 48th of his career

Defending champion Lewis Hamilton produced a trademark triumph of pace and panache to win Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg and replace him as leader of this year's world title race. Hamilton outpaced Rosberg at the start and then controlled the 70 laps with a mixture of speed and flawless judgement in sweltering heat at the Hungaroring circuit. His victory completed a hat-trick of successes in consecutive races, was his outright record fifth in Hungary, his fifth of the season and the 48th of his career. Rosberg, who started from pole position, came home second ahead of Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull, four-time champion Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari and Dutch teenager Max Verstappen in the second Red Bull. Kimi Raikkonen was sixth in the second Ferrari ahead of two-time champion Fernando Alonso of McLaren and Carlos Sainz of Toro Rosso, Valtteri Bottas of Williams and Nico Hulkenberg who was 10th for Force India. Hamilton's win increased his points total to 192, six more than Rosberg as Ricciardo moved up to third. "Awesome race Lewis, mega result," said his Mercedes engineer on team radio. "Well done mate. Fantastic drive." Hamilton responded generously. "As always, thank you guys, so much, for your hard work all weekend. This is a great result for the team," he said. (AFP)

Hamilton claims record-breaking fifth Hungarian Grand Prix win

Ferrari&#39;s gearboxes have become a weakness that the Formula One team has to fix, Sebastian Vettel said on Saturday after two failures at the British Grand Prix brought him a second successive grid penalty. 
 
The four-time world champion had gearbox problems on Friday and again on Saturday at Silverstone. 
 
&quot;It happened yesterday and today. That&#39;s a weakness and we need to stop it,&quot; said the German as he contemplated a five-place drop that will leave him starting from 11th spot in Sunday&#39;s race. 
 
&quot;I think the other occasions it was more a consequence of things happening. The issue we had yesterday and today is something new and we need to fix it.&quot; 
&nbsp;
<div>Vettel has had a torrid time of late, retiring from the Austrian Grand Prix last weekend after a high-speed tyre blowout while leading.</div>
 
Tyre supplier Pirelli blamed that on debris on track. 
 
The German said the car was a little off the pace at Silverstone, with Red Bull now looking like the closest challengers to champions Mercedes with Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo on the second row. 
 
&quot;I think we have done good steps in the past but probably not enough, compared to other people, so I think there&#39;s a lot of catching up for us to do,&quot; said Vettel, who also had a grid penalty in Austria last weekend. 
 
&quot;We need to make the car quicker, to put more downforce in it, make it more efficient at the same time, and add a bit of power.&quot; 
 
Ferrari are second overall in the championship but have yet to win a race this season. 
 
(Reuters)

Vettel, who retired from the Australian Grand Prix last week, has had gearbox problems twice in the ongoing British Grand Prix

Ferrari's gearboxes have become a weakness that the Formula One team has to fix, Sebastian Vettel said on Saturday after two failures at the British Grand Prix brought him a second successive grid penalty. The four-time world champion had gearbox problems on Friday and again on Saturday at Silverstone. "It happened yesterday and today. That's a weakness and we need to stop it," said the German as he contemplated a five-place drop that will leave him starting from 11th spot in Sunday's race. "I think the other occasions it was more a consequence of things happening. The issue we had yesterday and today is something new and we need to fix it." Vettel has had a torrid time of late, retiring from the Austrian Grand Prix last weekend after a high-speed tyre blowout while leading. Tyre supplier Pirelli blamed that on debris on track. The German said the car was a little off the pace at Silverstone, with Red Bull now looking like the closest challengers to champions Mercedes with Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo on the second row. "I think we have done good steps in the past but probably not enough, compared to other people, so I think there's a lot of catching up for us to do," said Vettel, who also had a grid penalty in Austria last weekend. "We need to make the car quicker, to put more downforce in it, make it more efficient at the same time, and add a bit of power." Ferrari are second overall in the championship but have yet to win a race this season. (Reuters)

Ferrari must fix gearbox weakness, says Sebastian Vettel

Nico Rosberg cruised to victory in the first Formula One race held in Azerbaijan on Sunday, and increased his championship lead over Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton to 24 points. 
 
While the German enjoyed an uneventful drive in the late afternoon sunshine, triple world champion Hamilton worked up a head of steam as he wrestled with his car&#39;s settings without the team being able to help. The Briton, who had sounded increasingly petulant, fixed the problem but finished fifth in a race billed as the European Grand Prix. 
 
Ferrari&#39;s Sebastian Vettel took second place, 16.6 seconds behind, with Force India&#39;s Sergio Perez in third place after overtaking Kimi Raikkonen&#39;s Ferrari on the last lap. 
(Reuters) 
 
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The Mercedes driver extended lead over reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Nico Rosberg cruised to victory in the first Formula One race held in Azerbaijan on Sunday, and increased his championship lead over Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton to 24 points. While the German enjoyed an uneventful drive in the late afternoon sunshine, triple world champion Hamilton worked up a head of steam as he wrestled with his car's settings without the team being able to help. The Briton, who had sounded increasingly petulant, fixed the problem but finished fifth in a race billed as the European Grand Prix. Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel took second place, 16.6 seconds behind, with Force India's Sergio Perez in third place after overtaking Kimi Raikkonen's Ferrari on the last lap. (Reuters)

European Grand Prix: Nico Rosberg conquers Baku street circuit

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