565 replies to this topic

[nigel red5]

Kimi Raikkonen wins on debut for Ferrari, Fernando Alonso scores a podium on his debut for his new employers Mclaren Mercedes, but drive of the day has to go to Lewis Hamilton who nails a podium in his maiden Grand Prix, a really impressive performance. Behind them Nick Heidfeld drove a solid race to P4, and Giancarlo Fisichella just managed to hold off Felipe Massa for fifth.

Lots of talking points to come from today.....

*Alonso's slow start
*Hamilton's opportuhnism at turn 1
*The Albers incident. Maybe he should have left the earplug alone?
*Honda's continuing nightmare
*The Coulthard / Wurz collision at turn 3. The replays of that from Wurz's on-board were frightening.

So what stood out for you today? Please share your thoughts and feelings on the Australian GP

[UPRC]

KIMI! YES!!!!!!!

[riffola]

Excellent drive by Kimi!
Good work by Hamster!

Go Ferrari!!

[qwazy]

From the parc ferme thread:

How about the parc ferme rule fencing in the drivers after the race, not allowin gthem to celebrate with their crews prior to the podium?

Pretty ridiculous if you ask me. We saw some of the more genuine celebrations, last season, after the drivers had parked their cars.

[clampett]

Hamilton
I told you this guy is special. The sole bright piece in this very boring race.

Massa again proved he has no racecraft. Successor of Hill but slower.

[jokuvaan]

Heikki and Nico ruined their weekend at the quali, could be good year for them later on.

Hamilton doesnt seem to fail expectations.

Very very few overtaking, track problem or engine rev? There were blocks all over the field.

[K-One]

Kimi did perfect work whole weekend, was fastest when it matterd. Massa had bad luck, but his race pace wasn't that great. Hamilton was exceptional, Alonso didn't do that strong against him and needed some help to get past him Disappointed with Renault and Kovalainen, have to wait post race comments.

[ARG]

Walk in the park for Kimi

[Tuxy]

Good job Kimi, Good recovery Massa. Hopefully next race you have an opportunity to show your true pace.

[SphereTL1000S]

Originally posted by clampett



Massa again proved he has no racecraft. Successor of Hill but slower.

Troll...welcome to my ignore list!

[robnyc]

Kimi is cool.. He didn;t need to push to hard...???? is he nuts , imagine if he pushes hard he would have lapped the entire field.

[inaki]

Youngest podium in F1 history

Kimi : 27 years old
Alonso : 25
Hamilton: 22

[Brandstormer]

I think this circuit needs a bit of a tweek to create a real 'overtaking zone'.
Every year if it wasn't the first race it would be one of the most boring of the year. (Like Hungary)

[Oho]

Originally posted by ARG
Walk in the park for Kimi

You wish? naah ... Luckily enough, for Räikkönen at least, walking was not mandatory...

[Jimellow]

The Ferrari team member dropping the champagne and almost ending someone's life... Classic!

[fasttrack]

Good race. It was not great though, it was little boring at times (but at least it was no procession like a few years ago). But it was a good start for the year.

The race director seemed to have a strange fixation with Kovalainen, although he seemed to be partly right, as it was getting entertaining towards the end of the race.

Button destroyed Barrichello's race, and also slowed down Massa significantly. Honda should have told him to let Barrichello through at least a handful laps before.

Hamilton had NOT had a great start, in fact had lost a couple positions, but while braking found a line nobody imagined possible - from inside to outside, and passed two or three cars (including Alonso). He also kept his pace over the race, and were not for the bad luck of getting behind Sutil at his in lap, he could probably made to 2nd in front of Alonso. Hamilton is the real deal and will put pressure over Alonso, just wonder how will it develop over the year. Anything is possible.

Raikkonen controlled the race from the start. Only a small mistake, probably lack of concentration. Seemed genuinely happy at the finish line. Massa's car on the other hand seemed a little bit erratic. And yes, I think it was the car. Bad luck. I thought he was going to try harder to pass Fisichella but seems like the risk of throwing away such hard earned points was too big. But he gave it a try on the last turn anyway. The one-stop strategy worked, but got me thinking, could he be a little bit closer to the front had he ran a two stopper? A little bit lighter and he would lose less time behind the Hondas. But that's racing.

All in all a good race, bring on the next one!

[Risil]

*from the Australian GP live thread*

Originally posted by Arrow
Thats very hard on this track unless you have a very large performance advantage. In equal cars it wont really happen and hamilton was not going slow. So are you bashing Alonso for not being able to overtake now? What exactly are you bashing.
Did you notice the gap alonso pulled out in the final stint?

I'm bashing the current regulations, especially what seems to be the disgraceful introduction of the rev-limiter that renders a three-second-a-lap advantage all but useless on the straights, and the continuation for a third year of useless aerodynamic restrictions which achieve nothing but prevent cars from following each other remotely closely.

Alonso has nothing to do with this one.

Mark my words, Monaco will have the best racing all year.

[512 TR]

Maximized result for Ferrari today.

Wonderful result for the team with all the problems Felipe had.

Congratulations to the win Kimi!

Great damage limitation Felipe!

[slapstick]

Who said that KR cannot pace himself?

[ensign14]

Originally posted by Tuxy
Good job Kimi, Good recovery Massa. Hopefully next race you have an opportunity to show your true pace.

According to ITV when both were in clean air Massa was 2sec slower.

Race of the day arguably from Kekinho. He seems to like Australia. Well ahead of Wurz and in the points ahead of the engine supplier in a privateer.

Red Bull were embarrassing, what happened to Webber? He went backwards. Kovalainen clearly read the Massa debut book as he seemed to enjoy exploring the scenery. Whereas Hamilton was within a Sato of beating a double World Champ.

Also embarrassing was Sutil - took him less than a lap to nerf someone off and then got penalized for not noticing Hamilton in his mirror. Seemed to learn, every time someone came to lap him thereafter he seemed to come to a halt.

[D82]

Boring as ever. I've nearly slept until DC-Wurz accident. That could have been very scary though.

The Iceman for WDC

[MortenF1]

A perfect weekend for Räikkönen!!
A very good performance from Massa as well.

I'm dissapointed that McLaren are that far behind them, but hopefully they can bring the gap down rapidly. A solid race from Alonso, but Hamilton is the one that gets the attention after today. As I wrote in RC-live, even I was surprised to see him that fast.

Nice to see atleast one BMW surviving.

Clumsy strategy from Honda - why didn't they order Button to move over right away? Barrichello was stuck for 14 laps!
Super Aguri - ...even if they went a bit backwards today.

Williams beats Toyota. As expected judging by pre-season testing, but a surprise following qualifying.

DC had a good race up untill that incident with Wurz. Webber suffered too many hick-ups to have a chance to score a point today.

Hugely dissapointing pace from Renault, and a very bleak debut from Kovalainen on top of that.

[512 TR]

Originally posted by clampett
Hamilton
I told you this guy is special. The sole bright piece in this very boring race.

Massa again proved he has no racecraft. Successor of Hill but slower.

Felipe was one a one-stopper you moron!

[jhodges]

Autosport must be getting wistful:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1h25:28.770
2. Alonso McLaren-Mercedes (B) + 7.242
3. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) + 18.595
4. Heidfeld BMW Sauber (B) + 38.763
5. Fisichella Renault (B) + 1:06.469
6. M.Schumacher Ferrari (B) + 1:06.805

Spectacular opener from Hamilton, nearly flawless from Raikkonen, and Wurz is luck to be alive.

[SilverArrow]

Kimi dominant, did not put a foot wrong the whole weekend
Alonso drove strategically
Hamilton the NEXT big british star!
Massa drove like the number two he was born to be

[Chubby_Deuce]

Originally posted by ensign14

According to ITV when both were in clean air Massa was 2sec slower.

I doubt this number for starters, and then recall that Massa was always on a full tank with fresh tyres. Horrible race to compare.

[Risil]

Aren't the wheels specifically positioned so that Coulthard couldn't get any closer to Wurz's cockpit than he did? At least, not unless he drives the wrong way, Grand Prix Legends style.

[clampett]

Originally posted by 512 TR


Felipe was one a one-stopper you moron!

Moron, he still had a 1-1.5 sec faster car than Renault. I expected an overtake in 2 laps. Massa is overrated, and people are very forgiving to him. Kimi will eat him this year.

[Scudetto]

Congrats to Kimi.
Same for Hamilton. Nice debut.

[Mauseri]

Originally posted by slapstick
Who said that KR cannot pace himself?

You need to have something to pace first. At McLAren he was usually the one trying to catch up.

[fasttrack]

Originally posted by ensign14
According to ITV when both were in clean air Massa was 2sec slower.

Massa's car was heavier all the times, as he ran a one-stopper. The car seemed a little bit erratic too at times. It may be the driver, but considering the problems he had (changing the gearbox twice and then the engine) it could be the car too.

[robnyc]

ALL i have to say before I go to bed is ......
this circuit really sucks for overtaking

[KWSN - DSM]

Good job by Kimi, Fernando and Lewis. They had the tools and used them t the best of what they could be used.

Kimi and Ferrari was clearly the fastest combination on track and won.

Fernando and Lewis were equallly matched in a good car, which seems best of the rest. With Massa startiing from the rear,they did what they could be presumed to. Finish 2nd and 3rd.

I do not think that too much should be put into Lewis leading Fernando for a good part of the race, he simply bided his time, and would have finished in front of Lewis no matter if the lappped traffic had been encountered or not.

I am now a "Rosberg guy", so happy to see Nico finish a solid drive in the points.

Kovalainen was the biggest disappointment to me, just not showing anything of what I had expected.

BMW not quite where I expected them to be.

Honda would have had Barichello in the points if they had told Button to let him past as soon as we all could see that he was so much faster. How a manufacturer can throw billion of Usd into F1 and not get it is staggering. You have to optimize your chances as a team all the time, every single lap, it is stupid not to.

I enjoyed the race, not much different from races last seasn (or several past seasons). After the start not a lot of overtaking.

[plain_facts]

Originally posted by 512 TR


Felipe was one a one-stopper you moron!

In the fastest car. Average drive. Not bad but not impressive.

[rce]

Kimi - so happy he won - but odd seeing him up there while the Italian anthem is played (just so used to seeing Michael).

Fernando & Lewis - lovely to see McLaren back at it after last year's crappy car.

BMW & Renault - I'm thinking it's going to be those four teams (Ferrari, McLaren, BMW & Renault) that challenge throughout the year.

Rubens - I have to say I'm tired of commentators saying what a shame it is that Jenson is stuck with Honda and it's potentially ruining his aspirations - what about Rubens - does he not have any aspirations? :

Toyota - I wasn't really expecting that.

Jenson - start 14th, finish 15th - pitland speeding penalty (not exactly the place he should be speeding). Is it Honda, is it Jenson, is it a combination??? I dunno, I think the Honda is a bit of a dog of a car, but then why did Rubens finish ahead - he started in 17th and ended in 11th?

DC - stupid move. Period.

[Tigershark]

Kimi Raikkonen - Amazing, a second quicker than anyone else in the field. Great to have him driving for Ferrari, even if he's not the personality Michael is.
Lewis Hamilton - Fantastic debut, I'm happy this guy is now in F1. It should be interesting how he matches up to Alonso as the season progresses. I have a feeling he'll do good.
BMW - They keep improving and might even be part of the top 3 teams now... makes you think twice about all the arguments they had with Williams when they were the engine supplier. What could have been?

Renault - Fisichella and Kovailanen were a bit disappointing considering the results of past years. Hopefully they can keep challenging BMW and McLaren at least.
Honda - Disappointing, only Barrichello did ok-ish but since when does the A-team trail the B-team? Not good.
Spyker - It's lonely at the top, but it's perhaps even more lonely at the back of the field. The new Minardi?

Coulthard - Seriously, these actions are totally unnecessary as shown by a great number of other drivers today.

--

Ferrari!

[Chubby_Deuce]

Originally posted by clampett
Kimi will eat him this year.

Uh... whatever turns you on, I guess.

[Clatter]

Originally posted by ensign14

According to ITV when both were in clean air Massa was 2sec slower.

But they were on different stratergies. One stopping must have compromised him somewhat.

[Cojayar]

Originally posted by KWSN - DSM
Good job by Kimi, Fernando and Lewis. They had the tools and used them t the best of what they could be used.

Kimi and Ferrari was clearly the fastest combination on track and won.

Fernando and Lewis were equallly matched in a good car, which seems best of the rest. With Massa startiing from the rear,they did what they could be presumed to. Finish 2nd and 3rd.

I do not think that too much should be put into Lewis leading Fernando for a good part of the race, he simply bided his time, and would have finished in front of Lewis no matter if the lappped traffic had been encountered or not.

I am now a "Rosberg guy", so happy to see Nico finish a solid drive in the points.

Kovalainen was the biggest disappointment to me, just not showing anything of what I had expected.

BMW not quite where I expected them to be.

Honda would have had Barichello in the points if they had told Button to let him past as soon as we all could see that he was so much faster. How a manufacturer can throw billion of Usd into F1 and not get it is staggering. You have to optimize your chances as a team all the time, every single lap, it is stupid not to.

I enjoyed the race, not much different from races last seasn (or several past seasons). After the start not a lot of overtaking.

Spot on.

Very nice and precise analysis of the race.

[dts9624]

Total domination (pacing and racing) from Kimi
Is it just me or did the front of K'R car seem very "restless" in certain corners?

Great to see Lewis H. on the podium in his first race, I hope he delivers and gives a serious challenge to Alonso.

[Chubby_Deuce]

Originally posted by Tigershark
Spyker - It's lonely at the top, but it's perhaps even more lonely at the back of the field. The new Minardi?

Rubbish. Minardi still exists and they have more heart and heritage than Spyker could ever dream of having.

[Risil]

Originally posted by robnyc
ALL i have to say before I go to bed is ......
this circuit really sucks for overtaking

I remember some overtaking in 1996-03.

[Daniel Lester]

Massa also did half the race on soft tyres - presumably the first half as the pace among the slower cars would have allowed him to get away with it.

[Clatter]

Originally posted by clampett


Moron, he still had a 1-1.5 sec faster car than Renault. I expected an overtake in 2 laps. Massa is overrated, and people are very forgiving to him. Kimi will eat him this year.

Its fun to watch you bashing, but then whinge like a baby when someone so much as mentions Fisi.

[Only Massa]

Great season start!

- kudos to Kimi: he drove a Schumacher-style race. His fastest laptime is impressive!

- Hamilton impressive and mature. He scared Alonso and was passed only by team orders (last pitstop lasted 8.2 seconds, while Alonso's 6.5: this is unsporty... )

- Not so impressive Alonso. Got second only with the help of Ron Dennis.

- Great race by Massa. Stunning his first long stint, *since he was on soft tyres!!!* He managed to get 6th starting from last in a race with no safety car and really few retirements. The wild boy has matured a lot.

- great race over all: lot of on-track passing

[Chubby_Deuce]

How was his first stint impressive?

[harsha_vardhan]

Congrats to Kimi. Always on the limit, dint do a thing wrong. Great debut with Ferrari team.

Massa, well his race was over yesterday itself. If only he could have overtaken Fisichella, it would have beeen awesome!!

None-the-less, well done Ferrari!

Forza Ferrari

[primer]

Originally posted by SphereTL1000S
Troll...welcome to my ignore list!

I wonder if he would even notice?! clampett has got, like, half the bulletin board on his ignore list.

[Spunout]

Räikkönen

Spot on. The sandbags are gone. Best car of the field made his task easy, though.

Folks who predicted Ferrari to suffer with "poor car developer"/"miles slower than Felipe" Kimi, I will refer to my bookmarks...

Hamilton

Stunning. I wasn´t expecting Lewis to be THIS good Within inches of Alonso??? While I don´t expect this trend to continue, today he was the star of the race for me. No question.

Massa

Solid performance and important WDC points. Steered clear from trouble. However: in clean air 1.5-2 secs slower than Kimi, who wasn´t even pushing 100%. To be honest, I expected more.

Rosberg

Nico is back. Agressive racing, nice overtaking.

Fisichella

With Fernando gone, this guy looks pretty good...

Kovalainen

Uh oh. Tough first race. Needs to step up his game.

[qvn]

Massa - great performance Recovering from 22nd to 6th.
Haminton - New English star is born!
Kimi - Great performance. One scary moment when he run wide but luckily damage was limited!.
Alonso .

Kubica -