Vettel fastest in final British GP practice

Ferrari8217;s double world champion Fernando Alonso was second on the timesheets,0.063 slower,with Red Bull8217;s Australian Mark Webber 8212; last year8217;s race winner 8212; in third place.

McLaren8217;s Lewis Hamilton was 13th and team mate Jenson Button,who has never stood on his home podium as an F1 driver,sixth.

At the slow end,Australian debutant Daniel Ricciardo lapped faster than Italian team mate Vitantonio Liuzzi in the Hispania.

Vettel will be chasing his third successive British Grand Prix pole in qualifying later on Saturday and his eighth in nine races this year.

The Red Bull8217;s continuing speed was some consolation for team boss Christian Horner,who spent the best part of an hour with technical head Adrian Newey locked in talks with race director Charlie Whiting.

The meeting followed yet another directive from the governing International Automobile Federation FIA about the engine regulations and sent to all the teams on Saturday morning.

In it,according to a copy pinned on the notice board next to race control,the FIA effectively backtracked on one sent out the previous day which had drawn complaints from Mercedes-powered McLaren.

Horner and Newey refused to comment after the meeting,leaving stony-faced and stalking back down the paddock to the Red Bull garages.

The FIA is clamping down on the use of exhaust gases for performance gain through engine maps that keep the throttle open even when a driver is braking to ensure a steady flow through the rear of the car.

Friday8217;s directive had allowed Renault to keep the engine throttle 50 per cent open,on grounds of reliability,while Mercedes were allowed to retain other characteristics of their engine.

However,sources said the FIA had decided on Saturday to revert to a previous position and reduce Renault8217;s allowance to 10 per cent at 12,000 revs and 20 percent at the maximum 18,000 revs.

The French manufacturer also supplies Renault and Team Lotus as well as Red Bull.