Twelve years after ITV won the rights to cover Formula One, the BBC have bought them back in a major coup.

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The BBC will screen the sport from the 2009 season, it was announced yesterday, after agreeing a five-year television-rights deal.

The announcement brought surprise that ITV should be walking away with 'Hamiltonmania' expected to hit new heights this season. But it seems that the deal will be good news all round.

The BBC, who have been perceived as under-delivering on major international sport over the past decade, get a high-profile series with burgeoning British interest. ITV, who need to husband resources with care, save money which can be used to expand coverage of football. They are also released from a scheduling nightmare, with races run at all times of the day and night, UK time.

Formula One, as usual, gets lots of money, with some suggestions from BBC correspondents of around £150 million for the five-year deal. It was also suggested that Bernie Ecclestone, Formula One's rights holder, would be happy to see his sport uninterrupted by advertisements, and on a channel that did not pay so much attention to football.

Ecclestone said: "I am delighted to conclude this deal. I thank ITV for their commitment to Formula One and the high quality of their coverage. It is an exciting time in Formula One and the BBC have some innovative ideas to consolidate and expand our UK fan base."

Dominic Coles, the BBC Sport director of sport rights, said: "The biggest motor sporting event in the world is returning home after 12 years. We were delighted when Bernie Ecclestone approached us about the return of F1 to the BBC. F1 is a crown jewel of sports broadcasting, so to bring the rights back to their traditional home from 2009 is tremendously exciting."

Meanwhile, in a separate statement, ITV revealed that they had retained the rights to broadcast Champions League matches as part of a deal covering 2009-12.

As well as the Champions League, ITV will show the FA Cup and all of England's internationals played at home between now and 2012. The BBC are practically bereft of live football, but claim they did not bid for live Champions League rights on grounds of value for money.

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They will now be hoping that Hamilton-fuelled Formula One will compensate.

While a Labour MP suggested in the House of Commons that the BBC would be better advised to spend their money on 'real' sport, the response to the switch on the Formula One website was overwhelmingly positive: the fans have hated having races interrupted by advertisements, and there is a widespread feeling that the BBC is somehow the 'natural' home of the sport.

There was also instant and enthusiastic speculation on the likely commentary team for the 2009 season.

Martin Brundle, who started his television career at the BBC, is widely regarded as one of the best analysts in any sport, and the BBC may opt to simply transfer him and ITV's knowledgeable and voluble commentator James Allen.

But the BBC have able commentators in Radio Five Live's David Croft and his predecessor Jonathan Legard. However much the fans may pine for him, the octogenarian Murray Walker is unlikely to make a comeback.

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk/baker