Australian Grand Prix

[petrym]

What a wild race! Out of 22 starters, only 7 cars finished (and one of the finishers was disqualified), 3 safety car periods due to severe crashes, and all six Ferrari-engined cars didn't make it to the finish line.

Oh, and Hamilton won it - but I don't think very many people noticed. ;)

[Sami]

Lewis was very lucky not to get screwed by the safety car, like many others did. I think Kovalainen got the worst of it, Kimi's misfortune doesn't count since he wouldn't have crossed the finish line anyways. Nice drive by him though, he most likely would have been 2nd, or at least 3rd had the safety car no been there and the car would have hold up.

Looks like it's McLaren season if Ferrari is having reliability problems again this season, but if they can sort them out I think they are going to be too fast for the Mac's.

[mrbigbluelight]

Australian Grand Prix ?

[F1nut]

Helluva start to the season. I'll bet we see traction control back real soon.

Go McLaren!!!

[GV#27]

A couple of nice suprises where Rosberg getting a podium,he is a classy young man and I hope he has a good year and brings Williams some much needed success.

Also Bourdais aquitted himself very nicely, but its a shame his engine blew with only a few laps left.

What can you say about Hamilton,he has M Schumacher- ish talent but with a personality to go with it.He is amazing.

[MillerLiteScott]

IthinksoitwasnotagreatstartoftheseasonforFerrari.

I enjoyed the race. McLaren looks pretty strong and according to Lewis they have not shown their full potential. I was originally a Williams BMW fan so I was glad to see both teams on the Podium. I have been a McLaren fan since JPM went there to drive the silver.

Looking forward to Malaysia. I hope Lewis keeps his head in check and doesn't get to big for his own britches. I think he will clinch the WDC pretty early and we will see a great fight for the WCC with BMW right up there with Mclaren and Ferrari. Advantage McLaren.

P.S. What a tough day for Rubens, Timo, Robert Kubicka(sp), Both Sebastians, and Kimi looks like he really needed TC back. I could care lees about Massa but he had a tough go at it also.

Scott

[Sami]

Kimi looks like he really needed TC back.

I disagree. Only thing he needs is a reliable car and it's back to back WDC's for him.

[F1nut]

Kimi looks like he really needed TC back.

More than anyone else at that.

[SBrown712]

Being a big BMW fan I was glad to see them do well. Maybe they can actually make it a three, or maybe four if Renault works, team race.

[Sami]

I wonder what everyone is thinking so far?

Hamilton's fall from graze, in danger of losing the #1 seat to his teammate. Maybe too early but he certainly has given poor performance so far this season and Kovalainen seems to be at least an equal in terms of speed.

BMW overtaking McLaren? Again, too early to tell but they are close if not already faster.

[GV#27]

Its early days,don't count LH or McLaren out as there is just to much talent and potential there.It can go in cycles where one team gets an advantage for a few races then the other can dominate the next few.The first race Ferrari looked lousy but have turned it around.McLaren may turn it around in Spain.

[Sami]

Like you and I both said, too early but it does look like LH's incredible rookie luck has ran out. Easy victory in Australia mostly due to no competition from Ferrari, followed by some poor driving in the next two races.

Right now it looks like an easy season for Ferrari IF their car holds together. I hope that's not the case and either BMW or McLaren can answer their speed.

[GV#27]

I hope that's not the case and either BMW or McLaren can answer their speed.

Yeah hopfully not.It would be great to have all three top teams in it right to the final race (like last year) before the WC is crowned.

[F1nut]

Certainly not the start Hamilton was hoping for, I'm sure.

[MillerLiteScott]

IthinksoitwasnotagreatstartoftheseasonforFerrari.

I enjoyed the race. McLaren looks pretty strong and according to Lewis they have not shown their full potential. I was originally a Williams BMW fan so I was glad to see both teams on the Podium. I have been a McLaren fan since JPM went there to drive the silver.

Looking forward to Malaysia. I hope Lewis keeps his head in check and doesn't get to big for his own britches. I think he will clinch the WDC pretty early and we will see a great fight for the WCC with BMW right up there with Mclaren and Ferrari. Advantage McLaren.

P.S. What a tough day for Rubens, Timo, Robert Kubicka(sp), Both Sebastians, and Kimi looks like he really needed TC back. I could care lees about Massa but he had a tough go at it also.

Scott

To anyone interested,

The race in Brazil turned out to be another edge of the seat race from the delayed start due to rain and the last 3 laps in the rain. The middle of the race was pretty mundane. I was surprised at the strategy McLaren used with Lewis and disappointed that Hiekki was nowhere to be found this race and the last 3-4 races.

The WDC went down to the last turn of the last race of the lap of the race season. All the while Felipe Massa, who won the race, and Ferrari did not know/ realize that Lewis Hamilton passed the struggling Toyota of Timo Glock with dry weather tires on when the rain picked up in the last few turns of the race while everyone else was on intermediate tires. By passing the Toyota Lewis Hamilton finished 5th which earned him 1 more point in the WDC than Felipe Massa. And in true F1 fashion there are all kinds of conspiracy theories that the Toyota let Hamilton pass.

As for the rest of the season, we had 5 race winning teams instead of the usual 2. BMW and Scuderia Toro Rosso teams won for the first time. We had 3 first time race winning drivers, Robert Kubica BMW, Sebastien Vettle Scuderia Toro Rosso, and Heikki Kovalainen McLaren Mercedes. And to everyones surprise Renault and Fernando Alonso became surprisingly competitive in the last 5 races or so in which he won 2 races. Renault was woefully of the pace at the beginning of the season. This is also exacerbated by the fact that the head of Mclaren said there car was 2.5 seconds faster per lap than they were at the beginning of the season and the Renault was 1.5-2 seconds off Mclarens pace at the beginning of the season.

Nuff rambling.

Scott