91Èȱ¬

UPDATED AT 1925 BST

After months of drawn-out and occasionally bitter wrangling, Formula 1's switch to 1.6-litre turbo engines for 2014 was rubber-stamped on Wednesday by the FIA world council, the sport's legislature. In theory, that should be the end of the matter.

But it may not be that simple. It has emerged in the last few days that many of F1's circuits share F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone's concerns about the new engines.

He believes the ear-splitting screech of the current 2.4-litre V8s is a critical part of the spectacle of F1 and that the introduction of the new engines, which will have a different and probably more muted sound, will reduce the sport's appeal.

Those with long memories in F1 have raised an eyebrow about Ecclestone's new concern for trackside spectators. This is a man who, until this latest political battle, appeared to some observers to have an eye only for the TV audience, from where much of the sport's income comes.

The circuits, though, are a different matter. Because of their contracts with Ecclestone's companies, the only way they can raise revenue out of F1 is through paying spectators. Costs are high and margins are tight. So if numbers will fall, they have a problem.

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Perhaps the most telling image of the weekend did not even happen on race day.

After qualifying third and fourth behind the , and briefly stood side by side as they took in the fact that, for all the pre-event talk, they were just as far behind as before.

The two finest racing drivers in the world didn't speak, nor even exchange a glance. But their drained, haunted faces told you all you needed to know about what rivals are up against for the remaining 11 races of this season.

Twenty-four hours later, .

Valencia was something of a reality check for anyone who retained even the slightest hope that Vettel and Red Bull's relentless march towards a second consecutive world title might be halted.

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is the latest grand prix driver to select his five favourite all-time races for our classic Formula 1 series.

As regular readers will know, 91Èȱ¬ Sport is serialising the F1 drivers' choices before every race this season to whet your appetites for the action to come. Highlights will be shown on this website and the red button on 91Èȱ¬ television in the UK.

Rosberg, who is for the second season in a row putting F1 legend firmly in the shade at , is the first driver so far this season to choose races only because of their status as all-time classics, with not one of his own making the list. Although the German took part in one of his selected events, he has chosen it for reasons that have nothing to do with himself.

In chronological order, Rosberg's choices are as follows:

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In all the excitement following stunning , one man has been overlooked.

driver put in by far his most convincing performance since he came out of retirement at the beginning of last year, narrowly missing out on a podium position.

The German legend's race in Montreal was a far cry from some of his lacklustre showings in the last 15 months. Competitively fast and assured in his handling of rivals on the track, he looked like he belonged at the front of a grand prix. And it has been a long time since anyone could confidently say that.

Could this be the beginnings of some consistent form from Schumacher, even a sign that he may yet recover the former greatness that won him a record seven world titles and 91 victories in his first career in Formula 1?

His team principal Ross Brawn, the man who masterminded all of Schumacher's world championships, knows him better than most. He told 91Èȱ¬ Sport in an exclusive interview that he had "always had the confidence" Schumacher would make a success of his comeback.

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As Lewis Hamilton ponders the fall-out from his controversial performance in Canada, he has more on his mind than a few lost points in the world championship.

Formula 1's most exciting driver is pondering his future as he watches Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel canter to a second consecutive world title.

Hamilton's frustration is down to the fact that he believes he is the fastest driver in the world, that he would beat any of his rivals if they were all driving the same car. It is a belief largely shared within Formula 1.

Most would probably say Fernando Alonso was the best driver - by which they mean the most complete - but they would agree that Hamilton is certainly the quickest. Although Vettel is gaining increasing support in both categories.

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One of the most spectacular races in a very long time

The McLaren driver came from last place to first in the space of 30 amazing laps on a track that, while it regularly produces the best race of the Formula 1 season, has never produced a race quite like this one.

It will surely go down as one of the most amazing grands prix in history and Button's performance matched it.

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Scotland's , who has made such an impressive start to his grand prix career with this season, is the latest driver to feature in our revised classic Formula 1 series.

Ahead of the , the 25-year-old has picked his five favourite all-time F1 races. We will broadcast highlights of each of his choices in this blog and on the 91Èȱ¬ red button to whet your appetites for the action to come in this weekend.

Di Resta follows in the footsteps of Sebastian Vettel, Michael Schumacher, Sebastien Buemi, Rubens Barrichello, Fernando Alonso and Nick Heidfeld so far this season.

The drivers have all taken a different approach to this task. , for example, picked only races from his own career, while the others drivers we have showcased so far have all to one degree or another chosen a mix of races in which they featured and ones from before their own time in the sport.

Di Resta has raced in only seven grands prix so far, so it is no surprise that four of his five choices are from the archive.

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Three days after motorsport's governing body, the FIA, , the likelihood of the race actually taking place remains as uncertain as ever.

As that the situation in Bahrain was now back to normal following the civil unrest that led to the race being postponed in February, the F1 teams were discussing what to do next.

I understand that the teams all feel that going to Bahrain this season is not a good idea, and that their objections are based on two main points:

Logistical - , the F1 team members have been working flat out since January, and shoe-horning an extra race into an already crowded season's end, and extending the championship until mid-December, is a step too far.

Ethical and moral - trying to bring such issues into sports scheduling raises all sorts of difficult questions, such as exactly where you draw the line. After all, Bahrain is not the only country on the F1 schedule about which human rights groups have concerns. Which is why sports' bodies generally try to stay out of politics. But the teams feel that if holding a grand prix in a strife-torn area is likely to exacerbate the situation, then that is on the wrong side of the line.

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