Ecclestone keeps watch on violence

Bernie Ecclestone is to monitor the political unrest in Bahrain over the weekend before making a definitive decision on the future of the season-opening grand prix next month.

Ecclestone appreciates the shifting sands of a volatile situation are too difficult to predict, and that he will be better equipped to appraise the matter in a few days.

Meanwhile, in Barcelona, where teams have been testing for the new season, world champion Sebastian Vettel posted the fastest time of the day in his Red Bull, with Ferrari's Fernando Alonso second.