Alonso, a two-time F1 champion, benefited from Sebastian Vettel's late-race mishap.

Vettel started on the pole and led two-thirds of the 49-lap race, but the Red Bull driver lost power, allowing Alonso to sweep by and take the lead for good.

Vettel, who finished second to champion Jenson Button in 2009, lapped the 3.914-mile, 23-turn Bahrain circuit during the closing 10-minute qualifying session in one minute, 54.101 seconds for his sixth career F1 pole. The young German won two of the final three grand prix last year.

"I am very happy to be on pole thanks to the team," Vettel said. "To come here the first time that everyone really shows how strong they are and to be on top is a very nice feeling." Vettel finished 0.141 seconds quicker than Massa, who will start on the outside pole.

It's anyone's guess right now who the favorite is to win this year's F1 world championship, as several drivers, particularly reigning titleholder Jenson Button, have new rides. The grid has increased with three new teams added and new rules are in place to make this one of the most competitive seasons in the sports' 61-year history.

THE SEVEN-TIME CHAMPION RETURNS Schumacher announced in December he was ending his three-year retirement in F1, as he joined the newly formed Mercedes GP. Mercedez-Benz recently acquired Brawn GP, which captured the constructors' title and drivers' championship with Button during the team's maiden season in 2009. Last August,

Amid the blistering desert heat, the 2010 Formula One season gets underway this weekend with the Bahrain Grand Prix. Three new teams -- Hispania Racing Team (HRT), Lotus Racing and Virgin Racing -- will make their debuts at Bahrain, but Michael Schumacher will be the center of attention as the seven- time F1 champion returns to the sport.

After three years of retirement, the 41-year-old German is making a comeback with the newly formed Mercedes GP team. Mercedes-Benz recently acquired Brawn GP, which captured the constructors' title and drivers' championship with Jenson Button in the team's maiden season last year.

Petrov, 25, will become the first Russian driver to compete in F1 when the circuit kicks off its upcoming season with the March 14 Bahrain Grand Prix. He will team with Poland's Robert Kubica, who departed BMW Sauber and replaced Fernando Alonso at Renault following the 2009 season. Alonso moved over to Ferrari.

Renault made the announcement while unveiling its new R30 car at Spain's Valencia circuit. F1's pre-season testing begins at Valencia on Monday.

ArgentinaPresident CristinaFernandez deKirchner madethe formal announcement at the Government House in Buenos Aires.

Lopez, 26, will become the 24th Argentine driver to compete in Formula One, but the first since Gaston Mazzacane, who drove for Prost from 2000-01. He previously served as test driver for Renault. After his stint at Renault, Lopez returned to Argentina in 2007 and has since taken three championships, 38 wins and 36 pole positions in his home country.

Alguersuari replaced Sebastien Bourdais at the Red Bull-owned team during the middle of the 2009 season.

At age 19, the Spanish-born driver became the youngest-ever competitor in F1 when he made his debut last July in Hungary. His best finish in eight grand prix so far is 14th, which came in Brazil.

F1's governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA), prohibits any pre-season testing until next month, but Schumacher is aiding organizers of the GP2 Series -- the feeder series to F1 -- with work on their next generation car.

Schumacher came out of retirement from F1 last month when he signed with Mercedes GP. The 41-year-old German retired from the sport following the 2006 season.

F1's governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA), banned Briatore from the sport last September for his role in the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix race fixing scandal. Investigations by the FIA and Renault found that Briatore and the team's executive director of engineering, Pat Symonds, planned a deliberate crash with driver Nelson Piquet Jr. in order to benefit the race strategy of Piquet's then teammate, Fernando Alonso, who went on to win the Singapore GP.

Neither Alonso nor any other Renault personnel were aware of the conspiracy.

Schumacher retired after the 2006 season and considered a comeback in August of this year to replace the injured Felipe Massa with Ferrari, but said he was still unable to drive because of injuries from a motorcycle accident in February.

The German star will be 41 in January and will be reunited with Ross Brawn, who previously helped Schumacher to F1 titles at Benetton and Ferrari. Brawn was retained as the team director when Mercedes-Benz acquired the Brawn GP team in November.

New rules helped F1 teams weather the global economic crises, but several controversies and scandals rocked the sport throughout the season. All in all, this year in F1 was indeed a memorable one.

BUTTON UP THE TITLE One year ago, Button and teammate Rubens Barrichello were left without rides when Honda Racing withdrew from F1 competition due to economic conditions. But both drivers had their futures in the sport revived when team principal Ross Brawn acquired the former Honda team just weeks prior to the start of this season.

After announcing their intentions to withdraw from F1 competition at the end of this season, BMW sold their team back to original founder Peter Sauber. Throughout the sale, the team was not a confirmed entry to the 2010 season, but the International Automobile Federation (FIA) said earlier this month they will be granted a grid slot -- taking the place of the departing Toyota team -- subject to them signing the Concorde Agreement that governs the sport.

Kobayashi most recently served as test and reserve driver for Toyota. The 23- year-old driver substituted for the injured Timo Glock at Toyota for the final two races of the season. He finished sixth in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Rookie Lucas Di Grassi from Brazil will join German Timo Glock, while Brazilian Luiz Razia and Alvaro Parente from Portugal will serve as the team's test and reserve drivers.

Glock was confirmed by Manor GP several weeks ago. The British team had its name rebranded to Virgin Racing last week when F1's governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA), published the official entry list for next season. The name change came before Manor team founder John Booth and Virgin owner Richard Branson announced their sponsorship agreement.

Malaysian Fairuz Fauzy will take on the role of test and reserve driver for the team.

The appointment of all three drivers was announced in a ceremony held at Malaysia's parliament on Monday.

The International Automobile Federation said on Friday its World Motor Sport Council approved a proposal to award points to the top-10 finishers in each race.

According to a statement from the WMSC, "due to the expanded grid of 13 teams, and further to the recommendation of the F1 Commission, a new points system will be in place for the 2010 season." Race winners will receive 25 points, with 20 points awarded to second place and 15 for third. The next seven finishers will be scored in the following order: 10-8-6-5-3-2-1.

Silverstone, located in Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire, England, has hosted the British GP each year since 1987. But Silverstone lost the rights to hold the event when Donington Circuit and Ecclestone agreed to a provisional deal in 2008. Donington Ventures Leisure Limited failed to generate enough funds to upgrade its track for an F1 race, forcing Ecclestone to terminate negotiations with the circuit's owners.

"This will ensure that Great Britain will remain on the Formula One calendar for many years to come, which is something I have personally always wanted to see happen," Ecclestone said.

Raikkonen, the 2007 F1 world champion, has signed a one-year contract with Citroen.

He will compete in 12 of 13 WRC events next year. The team will not run in the New Zealand race.

F1's governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA), said in a statement on Thursday it has informed the Swiss team of its acceptance for next year's world championship.

According to the statement, "The FIA has written to inform BMW Sauber AG that their application for an entry in the 2010 FIA Formula One world championship has been successful.

The name change comes before Manor team principal John Booth and Richard Branson's Virgin Group's expected announcement of a sponsorship agreement later this week. Virgin sponsored F1 championship team Brawn GP this year, but Mercedes-Benz has recently taken over Brawn. Manor already has signed German driver Timo Glock.

Twelve teams rather than the expected thirteen currently make up the FIA list. Manor joins US F1, Campos Meta 1 and Lotus F1 as those new teams for next year's F1 campaign.

The German car maker also will end its shareholding with McLaren.

Mercedes' parent company, Daimler AG, along with Aabar Investments PJSC, will take over 75.1 percent of Brawn GP, which captured the constructors' title and drivers' championship with Jenson Button in the team's maiden F1 season. The remaining 24.9 percent will remain with current stakeholders Ross Brawn and Nick Fry. Brawn will remain as team principal.

In a press release, Toyota said it remained dedicated to competing at the top of motor sports, but because of the abrupt economic changes that started last year it was withdrawing from the circuit.

Toyota leaves F1 having compiled 13 podium and 87 point finishes over eight seasons since 2002. The company said it intended to find a solution for parties who would be affected by the decision.

Barrichello won two grand prix this year in Brawn GP's sensational maiden F1 season.

The Brazilian finished 18 points behind world champion and teammate Jenson Button. Brawn also clinched the 2009 constructors' title.

Vettel took command after Lewis Hamilton, the pole sitter, retired early due to brake failure. The 22-year-old German claimed his fourth victory of the season. The Abu Dhabi GP marked the first F1 twilight event.

"It's a perfect day to finish the season on a high," said Vettel, who joined Michael Schumacher as the only German drivers to score four or more F1 wins in a year.

Hamilton, the 2008 world champion, lapped the 3.451-mile circuit in one minute, 40.948 seconds for his fourth pole in the last seven grand prix. The McLaren driver also recorded his 17th career Formula One pole.

"The car has been probably the best it's been all year," Hamilton said. "It seems to feel quite comfortable on this circuit. What they have done here is incredible. I think it's just a real pleasure to drive here." Hamilton wound up 0.667 seconds quicker than Vettel, who will start on the outside pole.

The 2009 Formula One calendar concludes this weekend with the first running of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

While the Abu Dhabi GP should be entertaining, the F1 driver championship and constructors' title have already been wrapped up. Jenson Button won his first world championship with a fifth-place finish two weeks ago in the Brazilian Grand Prix. Brawn GP also clinched the constructors' title in Brazil.