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Vettel steals victory from Hamilton in Australian Grand Prix

MELBOURNE, March 25 – Sebastian Vettel made full use of the virtual safety car to sneak in front of Lewis Hamilton and hold off the frustrated champion to win Formula One's season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday. The Mercedes engine's infamous 'party mode' that delivered Hamilton a blistering pole lap on Saturday could do little once Ferrari's Vettel nosed ahead when re-entering from pit-lane midway through the race at Albert Park. Pole-sitter Hamilton had appeared set to coast to victory with a clear pace advantage but the race turned on its head with the safety car, which was called after Romain Grosjean's Haas failed and rolled to a stop at turn two. In another bonus for Ferrari, Kimi Raikkonen finished third, fending off Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo and leaving the unlucky Australian still searching for a first podium in his home race. "We got a bit lucky." Four-times world champion Vettel claimed a 48th overall win and his third in Melbourne following his victories at Albert Park last year and in 2011. "It was needless to say we got a bit lucky with the timing of the safety car," the German, who had started from third place and inherited the lead when Hamilton and Raikkonen had pitted earlier in the race, told reporters. "It's not the easiest track to pass." For Hamilton, the result was a bitter pill to swallow and had echoes of last year's race. Vettel also managed to re-enter in front of him from pit-lane in 2017 before burning away to victory while the pole-sitting Briton was blocked by traffic. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said his team had miscalculated the margin between the cars during the safety car period. "We thought we had enough margin," he told the BBC. "It must have been a software bug in the system that caused us to get it wrong. We are digging deep now to understand where we had a problem." "I don't understand what's happened." Hamilton, who cockily spoke of "wiping the smile off" Vettel's face with his pole lap on Saturday, battled to keep positive. "Even now I don't understand what's happened," the 33-year-old told reporters. "I did everything I believe I was supposed to do." After the pit-lane setback, Hamilton drove hard to reel in Vettel and battled back after taking a slide at a corner that blew out the lead to nearly three seconds. But he finally waved the white flag in the closing laps to preserve the car for future races.

The real Wolf of Wall Street's Ferrari Testarossa is for sale

In 2013, acclaimed filmmaker Martin Scorsese profiled the rise and fall of financial crook Jordan Belfort in the movie The Wolf of Wall Street, with Leonardo Di Caprio in the lead role. Now you can own an automotive piece of that fascinating real-life tale by buying Belfort's 1991 Ferrari Testarossa. According to the seller, Belfort bought the Ferrari in New York in 1991. He must not have driven it very much, though. There have been other owners since him, but the Testarossa still has only covered 8,300 miles. With its white exterior, your friends might think you're trying to emulate Sonny Crockett from Miami Vice, and the interior has beige leather, which still looks to be in great condition. To prove Belfort's ownership, the sale comes with his name and address in the warranty book and on supply invoices. There's even a set of matching luggage, and the seller allegedly found a $50 bill in one of the bags' lining. Even if Belfort didn't drive the Testarossa too much, he might have had some fun with it. According to the listing, "it was involved in a 'Wolf' moment as early as the original test drive." However, the seller will only tell the next buyer what that means. Belfort's Testarossa is currently for sale in Monaco for an undisclosed price, but as a car formerly used in the United States, it might not be too hard to bring back. If you do decide to buy Belfort's Ferrari, remember to treat The Wolf of Wall Street as a cautionary tale. Related Video:

FCA delays distribution of Ferrari shares

Even if you can't afford an actual Ferrari, soon you can own a part of the famous company thanks to its upcoming initial public offering. FCA will put 10 percent of the Prancing Horse on the market in the third quarter of this year. However to reap extra money for 2015's bottom line, the rest of the sports-car maker's stock will remain undistributed for a little longer. According to Automotive News, the strategy is quite simple to understand. FCA is holding off until the first quarter of 2016 to divvy up the remaining Ferrari stock to shareholders. By doing so, the automaker gets to claim 80 percent of the Prancing Horse's profits for its 2015 financial numbers. While FCA is already showing strong results through Q1 2015, being able to add extra cash on the balance sheet is always a plus. FCA hasn't set a specific date for the IPO, but Ferrari stock was announced to be traded in the US and possibly on a European exchange, as well. According to Automotive News, FCA currently owns 90 percent of the company, and Piero Ferrari has the remaining 10 percent, which he isn't selling. Related Video: