Barrichello 6th, Button 10th on revised grid
The Brazilian was penalized five grid places by the stewards for ignoring yellow flags in qualifying, but actually Barrichello will start sixth, just one place lower than his qualifying allocation.
At the same time, while just two places behind Barrichello in qualifying, and receiving the same five grid demotion, championship leader Button drops to tenth place.
The grid gap between the Brawn duo has therefore increased from two to four places, due to a complicated system whereby the grid is determined in the event of multiple penalties.
The grid is shuffled in the order the offences were committed, rather than all penalties being applied at the same time.
However, the governing body is being criticized in some quarters for allowing the confusion and misreporting to last so long, after FIA officials left the Suzuka circuit on Saturday night declaring that the actual grid order would only be published in the morning.
It was already being widely reported that Barrichello would start the race as low as tenth, with Button – who needs 5 more points than his teammate to seal the title on Sunday – in about 12th.