F1 tweaks qualifying rules; Kovalainen cleared

Formula One qualifying rules changed Thursday after the Super Aguri team withdrew from the Formula One championship. With only 20 cars racing at Sunday's Turkish Grand Prix, race stewards decided five rather than six cars will be excluded after each of the first two parts of qualifying Saturday. That will leave 10 cars to compete for the pole in the final 10-minute qualifying session. The Super Aguri team pulled out of F1 on Tuesday due to financial difficulties. The Japanese team, founded in 2005, had no points from four races this season.
In other F1 news, Heikki Kovalainen, left, has been cleared by doctors to race in the Turkish Grand Prix, giving McLaren a boost as it aims to snap Ferrari's three-race win streak. The 26-year-old Finn was given a go-ahead for Sunday's race after undergoing medical checks by governing body FIA on Thursday, following his violent crash at the Spanish GP. A wheel rim failure caused a tire on Kovalainen's car to explode and send him barreling into a wall at high speed. The crash left him in a hospital overnight with slight injuries, including a concussion. Ferrari is still the favorite at the Istanbul Speed Park circuit, where its drivers have won all three races.
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-- The Associated Press
Photo: AP