Irvine ready for Suzuka shoot-out

The championship leader flew back from Paris to Japan to wait to hear if his Malaysian Grand Prix victory would stand after all, and was ecstatic when he heard the verdict.

'I knew I would have to wait until 6pm (Japanese time) before I knew,' Irvine explained. 'Believe me, those were the longest four hours of my life. When the call finally came, it was Jean Todt who gave me the good news.

'Never once did I ever think that Ferrari could have done something illegal to gain an advantage. That doesn't mean I wasn't worried though, because you never know.

'It's great news, although after Ferrari put their case to the Appeal Court I already felt confident that we had proved our point.

'This is the best result for Ferrari, for me and for the sport of Formula One. We're now going to have a cracking weekend in Suzuka, which is my all-time favourite racetrack.'

The pressure of the appeal now gone, Irvine is totally focused on making the most of his chance to get back in command of the title battle.

'This is a big relief,' he admitted. 'Now I'm just going to relax for a couple of days.'