Grand Prix 2011 Australian Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

And so finally it's here.

After the recent events in Bahrain the delayed 2011 Formula One season is underway this weekend in Melbourne, Australia.

For the history of the event and the circuit information, click on the link below:

Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit (Albert Park) | Clip The Apex

As we stand on the brink of the new F1 season there are many un-answered questions. How will the new tyres effect each team? who will find the right package from the off? and many others.

Unusually for a pre-season testing period there was very little information that could be gained by F1 fans as to who would have the upper hand as the season get's underway. Mclaren appear to be struggling with their new car while Ferrari and Red Bull seem to be the early pace setters.

Williams have designed a radical new car for this season and it could mark the return to the front end of the grid for them while the jury is still out as to the performance of Mercedes and if they can make up for a lacklustre season last year. Both Rosberg and Schumacher have been positive in the press about their new car however the time sheets at the pre-season tests didn't exactly match their opinions. Renault have designed one of the more radical cars at the start of the season but without the talent of Robert Kubica the team may not get off to the start they had hoped for. Heidfeld is an experienced replacement but will he have the speed that his former team mate has?

Towards the rear of the grid, Torro Rosso look like they could be swallowed by at least two of the new teams from last season while Sauber will hope to have built on their improvment from 2010 and move towards the front end of the grid. Force India will also be hoping that a rough showing in pre-season testing will not translate in to a rough season.

Of last seasons new teams, both Lotus and Virgin have made strides forward with their 2011 challengers. The very least they will be looking for at the first race is to match the times of the cars at the tail end of Q1. HRT meanwhile, look to have produced a car that is a leap ahead on their 2010 effort but will once again suffer from a total lack of pre-season testing and from a tiny budget with which to develop the car further.

So, who is going to be quick out of the box and who is going to suffer a rude awakening with their cars? The first indication we will have will be in the small hours of Thursday night/Friday morning Uk time but we won't really know until qualification starts on Saturday.

Bring it on..................
 
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Galahad said:
Who'll be the first driver to christen F1 2011? Normally one would look to the likes of HRT, but if the Spanish team can't get its dampers through customs to a test...held in Spain...then surely the car will still be in bits for FP1...?

Thus I plump for Jeremy of the Rice Pudding (Jerome D'Ambrosio for the non-Brits out there)
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Ha ha!
Off-topic for F1 I know, but that reminds me of one of my all-time favourite gridiron football players, the former San Francisco 49ers hall-of-fame wide receiver, Jerry Rice!
 
Brogan said:
I did say earlier I was now getting a little excited ;)
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To be fair, there is quite a lot to get excited about. I reckon this season could be even better than last. It might not be as tight, but the individual races seem to be quite well setup. Then again, i remember having all this build up to Bahrain last year and then we were let down. Maybe we need the first race to be crap, so that when it does get good we won't have been expecting it.
 
Galahad said:
Who'll be the first driver to christen F1 2011? Normally one would look to the likes of HRT, but if the Spanish team can't get its dampers through customs to a test...held in Spain...then surely the car will still be in bits for FP1...?
Click to expand

I'm quite looking forward to seeing the HRT's. Just hope they have improved or they will be slaughtered.
 
Anyone think Quali Q1 could be more interesting this year. Looks like Lotus might break from the bottom 6 this year which could leave 3 place open for the drop. Possible that Virgin might have improved enough as well.
 
If anyone looks like slipping back into Team Lotus's clutches I think it'll be Force India. Interesting that FI have a dispute going on with Lotus re design 'piracy', and that they were the only two teams to go with the 'blade' type of airbox...
 
This new chat system actually gives everyone the ability to edit and delete their own messages by clicking the little arrow on the left of each message.

Not sure that's a good idea yet :D
 
Could be in interesting in practise to see how the two drivers from each compare with their new cars. Big changes like the tyres and other rules could shift the balance unexpectedly in some teams.
 
Brogan said:
This new chat system actually gives everyone the ability to edit and delete their own messages by clicking the little arrow on the left of each message.

Not sure that's a good idea yet :D
Click to expand
with my 'special' ability to type before i engage brain, an edit/delete function is essential...
 
FungusDBogeyman said:
surely working there would make the timings better for you? for example HK is only 3 hours behind.
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I think you may be right - I think in my brain-fried state after work last night I got confused over which direction the shift was going. Throw in changes in daylight saving, and I had no chance!

You bring me much joy! :)
 
Well Red Bull seem to be the class of the field yet again. Renault and Force India appear to be off the pace
 
FP1 over. Very intriguing. I have a few points.

- Good session for Mclaren, finally getting laps in and for most of it looked on the pace.

- Mclaren and Mercedes look like they might be the best overtaking cars and the ones who can most take advantage of the DRS, with the Mercedes engine giving them high top speeds. This is particularly good for Lewis because he loves to overtake.

- Mistakes might become more coming with the DRS in practise and Quali with drivers trying to find the limit in which they can use it. We saw quite a few people going off in that session. None the least, Karun, in the first car out, on the third corner,

- Order doesn't seem to be much different from last year, although we won't know for sure till tomorrow. 1.Red Bull, 2.Ferrari, 3.Mclaren, 4.Mercedes, 5.Williams, 6.Sauber (not sure where Renault are going to slip in).

- Field spread looks like it could possibly be less than ever before. Difficult to know without knowing fuel loads, but for much of that session it was very tight. Obviously i'm not including Virgin and Hispania in this.

- Being good over one lap is surely going to be less important than ever. Did you see that shot of Vettel's tyres. With the overtaking buttons and tyre where the race should be more important and exciting than ever.

- Red bull look like one of the worst teams for tyre degrading in that session. Mclaren weren't too bad.

- Good article just came through on BBC about whether or not the knew rules can finally revolutionize Formula 1. Not exactly been dull in recent years, but overtaking has been difficult. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/9428059.stm

- This is going to be a great season. :)
 
I've finally woke up! My "alarm" clock is quieter than a million pins dropping onto a bed of feathers. >:(

Oh well, missed FP1 but at least I get to see FP2..! :cheer:
 
Well, as a Mclaren fan i have to take positives from FP1 and 2. Formula 1 as a whole looks pretty healthy this season again. Tyres are the most interesting factor. It will not only make it more exciting through added unpredictability of pit stops and strategy, but could encourage over taking between two cars with tyres in different states. It is almost impossible to know where we are at with the DRS. The 30 minutes at the end of that session were pointless because teams didn't want to overtake for obvious reasons. I'm pretty sure it did make a difference to Vettel though when he used it. Again, difficult to know. Maybe someone will find comparisons of speed through there with and without the wing being used. It did seem to make a big difference on the lap as a whole. Looks like the fastest laps of the weekend will be the pole time this year.
 
The new graphics are good. Beside the list of positions, this year there is a little P or a conquered flag to tell us if a driver is in the pits or has crossed the finishing line at the end of a session, and therefore can not do another time. One of those things that is so useful you wonder why they didn't think of it before. Will be very handy for quali, allowing us to know who in the field has another run when the flag has fallen.
 

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