Nick Heidfeld says he will use simulations and video footage to learn as much as possible about the new Valencia street circuit ahead of this weekend’s inaugural race around the city’s port.

The BMW Sauber driver hasn’t sampled the layout in a computer simulator, but has seen video of the Formula 3 and GT races held on the circuit earlier this month.

He believes simply walking the circuit and working through a plan on paper will put him in the best possible position prior to the first session on track on Thursday.

“We don’t have a simulator like other teams do, but we have some on paper so I can see speeds, braking, and gears, things like that so we can look at the profile,” he told autosport.com. “I will try and get some footage and I’ve already seen something on the internet.

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Fernando Alonso is reportedly poised to join Honda for the 2009 season.According to The Guardian newspaper, the former World Champion is ready to leave Renault and has agreed a $15m deal with the Brackley outfit to partner Jenson Button.

Alonso re-joined Renault for 2008 after his one-year stint at McLaren ended in acrimony and accusation and his stay with Honda is set to be similarly brief. It is claimed that ‘the Spaniard looks likely to join Ferrari in 2010 although the precise date of his arrival is difficult to establish as Kimi Raikkonen, the present World Champion, is contracted to the Italian team until the end of next year and Felipe Massa to the end of 2010. Driving the Honda for one year - and maybe two - might offer Alonso the best stop-gap deal available.’

With Raikkonen and Felipe Massa set to be retained by Ferrari and a return to McLaren inconceivable, BMW were considered to be the most likely escape route for Alonso from Renault. However, aware of the rumours that Alonso has already agreed to join Ferrari in the future, they were unwilling to sign him on anything but a binding, long-term contract.

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Heikki Kovalainen took a shock first Formula One victory in the Hungarian Grand Prix after the dominant Felipe Massa suffered an engine failure with three laps to go and Lewis Hamilton fell back with a puncture.

The late drama allowed Timo Glock to take his maiden podium in second place, as the Toyota driver fended off Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari in the closing stages.

Although Hamilton had dominated most of the weekend, it was Massa who surged to the front as soon as the lights went out at the start.

The Ferrari immediately passed second place qualifier Kovalainen, then drew alongside Hamilton on the outside into Turn 1. Massa then locked up both front wheels as he braked extremely late for the corner, but managed to turn in ahead.

Massa then managed to edge away slightly in the first stint, and although he stopped one lap ahead of Hamilton at the end of their first stints, the Brazilian’s lead had been sufficient to keep him in front after the stops.

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Sebastien Bourdais has been handed a five-place grid penalty after race stewards ruled he had held up Nick Heidfeld’s BMW at the end of qualifying one in Hungary.

Heidfeld claimed he had been blocked by the French Toro Rosso driver as they rounded the final corner at the Hungaroring, contributing to his shock failure to get himself into Q2.

And after reviewing the incident, race stewards at the circuit announced on Saturday afternoon that Bourdais would be demoted to 19th on the grid.

“The stewards having received a report from the Race Director, have considered the following matter, determine a breach of the regulations (Article 31.7) of the 2008 FIA formula One Sporting Regulations has been commited by Sebastian Bourdais, he will be dropped 5 grid places,” read an FIA statement.

The FIA also confirmed that it had also looked at a separate potential Q1 blocking incident involving Williams’s Kazuki Nakajima, who missed the cut, and Renault’s Fernando Alonso.

However they ruled that no action would be required in this case after speaking to both drivers.

“The stewards having received a report from the Race Director which stated that driver Kazuki Nakajima may be impeded car no 5 Fernando Alonso during Q1.

“The stewards after hearing the explanation of both the drivers decided that the incident requires no further action.”

Lewis Hamilton put himself in the ideal position to claim a hat-trick of consecutive wins in Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix by heading a McLaren 1-2 on the grid.

The McLaren ace delivered on his strong practice pace to claim his 10th career pole position ahead of team-mate Heikki Kovalainen as the Woking squad continued to enjoy a clear edge over title rivals Ferrari.

Indeed the Italian team never looked likely to spoil Hamilton’s serene progress to pole position and Felipe Massa will start third, with defending world champion Kimi Raikkonen down in a lacklustre sixth for a second straight race.

As an example of Hamilton’s confidence in his car, he set just one fast lap in each of the first two qualifying stages and then after completing a first lap in Q3 which would have already been good enough for pole, lowered the benchmark still further with a 1m20.899s.

Kovalainen closed to within three tenths of a second of his team-mate to move up to second with his own final lap, with Massa also improving late on to third.

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