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..................

 

[Andrea_Moda_Rules]

Wow that was threw up a couple of double 6s. Massa got very lucky in Q1 and what the heck was Hiedfeld doing down in in 17th. i know a lot of people kicked up a fuss when Ferrari told him to move over in Germany last year but the cold hearted reality is he is looking like he did last year, perhaps a bit worse and he just doesn't desrve equal treatment in the team at the moment. lets hope he races faster then he is qualifying at the moment.

I think the Press Confrence said it all. Even infact not what they sadi either. Lewis and Mark looked utterly despressed and lewis even shaking his head when he found out Vettels KER's failed. Vettel is looking mighty fine for tomorrow.

 

[MCLS]

Overall impressions:

Mclaren second fastest team?
Mercedes not as quick as we expected
Renault chalk and cheese within - 1 excellent quali and 1 poor
Massa horribly out of sorts.
Red Bull ominously fast
Sauber and Torro Rosso have taken the largest step forward of the midfield teams
The new teams aren't any better, HRT are worse.

 

[MCLS]

I think the Press Confrence said it all. Even infact not what they sadi either. Lewis and Mark looked utterly despressed and lewis even shaking his head when he found out Vettels KER's failed. Vettel is looking mighty fine for tomorrow.

How many times did we say that last year though and then Vettel messed up in the race somehow. The tyre situation is going to be pivotal, particularly if Vettel chews his up too quickly trying to establish a lead over Hamilton.

 

[Chad Stewarthill]

What about how Jenson reacted when told by Jake that both Hamilton and Vettel had KERS failure?

 

[Andrea_Moda_Rules]

How many times did we say that last year though and then Vettel messed up in the race somehow. The tyre situation is going to be pivotal, particularly if Vettel chews his up too quickly trying to establish a lead over Hamilton.

Personally I think that now Vettel has his world title that it will calm him down a bit now. but if that 0.7 advantage is real and not lost with the race DRS rules (how much could that change things??) it would be an almighty boo-boo from him to screw it up. even with the quickly worn tyres, he should be able to bulid up enough advantage to be cautious with them, biggest threat, bar mistakes, is RedBull have to do an extra pitstop because there not so kind on the tyres - but that seems less of an issue now, now teams are expecting things to be as 'bad' as they thought they would in teting.

 

[johnnoble1990]

I don't think you become a World Champion without being a bit of a racer. But anyway, with a 0.778sec per lap advantage, Seb won't necessarily need to do a lot of racing. Very happy for Lewis though.

I think completely the opposite. Seb was caught out quite a few times last year at the start and i really do think he become world champion without being a racer. I can't think of anything good he did last year other than with clean air?

 

[MCLS]

We've seen that when the tyres go, they really do go. A 6/7 second gap could go in a few laps depending on the condition of the tyres of the car behind

 

[johnnoble1990]

Personally I think that now Vettel has his world title that it will calm him down a bit now. but if that 0.7 advantage is real and not lost with the race DRS rules (how much could that change things??) it would be an almighty boo-boo from him to screw it up. even with the quickly worn tyres, he should be able to bulid up enough advantage to be cautious with them, biggest threat, bar mistakes, is RedBull have to do an extra pitstop because there not so kind on the tyres - but that seems less of an issue now, now teams are expecting things to be as 'bad' as they thought they would in teting.

You have to remember that that was over 2 laps he pulled out that advantage. It was neck and neck for most of quali and i don't think you can push that hard every lap in a race. Plus, by the sounds of things there are going to be many more factors than this that decides races this season. As a Lewis fan I am extremely confident he will win the race.

 

[Andrea_Moda_Rules]

You have to remember that that was over 2 laps he pulled out that advantage. It was neck and neck for most of quali and i don't think you can push that hard every lap in a race. Plus, by the sounds of things there are going to be many more factors than this that decides races this season. As a Lewis fan I am extremely confident he will win the race.

Perhaps and anyhow quali was a little odd, big gaps between teammates and so on. i could really care who wins as long as its a good race and Hispana are let in for the race . I thought i couldn't be anymore excited going into this season but now i am. This first race is really intriguing. there doesn't seem to be quite a pattern to what is going on at the moment.

 

[Chad Stewarthill]

You have to remember that that was over 2 laps he pulled out that advantage...

Uh? The whole point of qualifying is that you do your one fastest lap when needed, preferably at or near the end. There would be no point in going off too hard at the start, then trashing your tyres. But anyway, whatever happened in the rest of the session, he still managed to pull that gap when it mattered.

Don't get me wrong; if you knew me you'd know that I'm one of Hamiltons' biggest fans and have been since his 'Champions of the Future' days. I'm sure that he will make a good fight of the race tomorrow, and even 2nd place would be a dream result given where Mclaren were after winter testing. The encouraging thing for Lewis is that both his and Vettel's times were, by all accounts, set without KERS operational.
Anyway, the thing that pleases me most about the Mclaren turnaround is the effect on Lewis' chances over the whole season, not just the first race.

 

[Chad Stewarthill]

I thought i couldn't be anymore excited going into this season but now i am. This first race is really intriguing. there doesn't seem to be quite a pattern to what is going on at the moment.

Vettel 8 tenths quicker than Webber
Hamilton 5 tenths quicker than Button
Alonso 6 tenths quicker than Massa
Rosberg 5 tenths quicker than Schumacher

I'd say those figures have the makings of a pattern

 

[MCLS]

The first two were done with a broken KERS as well so it could have been more

 

[snowy]

The Red Bull and Vettel have remained in a sphere all of there own. Everything else has been turned on its head for most teams. Ferrari have fallen off a cliff, McLaren have scaled a mountain, Mercedes have flattered and deceived, and Renault leapt out of the void into contention.

First things first, where is the Red Bull getting all this performance. Answer: The final sector.

	Sect 1	Sect 2	Sect 3

Vet	28.088	22.320	33.045

Ham	28.149	22.399	33.609

Web	28.197	22.643	33.400

But	28.237	22.556	33.777

Alo	28.427	22.549	33.998

Pet	28.443	22.662	34.142

Ros	28.499	22.563	34.041

If tyre wear was a concern to Red Bull then they very likely would not out perform everyone in the final sector. So any hopes that the RB is going to have to make more pitstops than their rivals should be dispelled.

Why would the Red Bull perform so well in the final sector?
The answer might well lie in the speed trap records:
Speed trap:

3 N. ROSBERG	313.4 

4 J. BUTTON 	312.8 

5 L. HAMILTON	312.7 

--

11 V. PETROV 	311.1 

--

14 F. ALONSO 	309.7 

15 F. MASSA 	309.5 

16 J. ALGUERS'	309.5 

17 S. VETTEL 	308.3 

18 M. WEBBER 	308.3 

The Red Bull is running more wing perhaps... creating more downforce, producing more drag. Any way you look at it they are making up time in the corners and using their tyres very well.

As for Ferrari falling off a cliff, one possibility is that they have made a big compromise in setup. Running a car quick in qualifying requires certain compromises but if race strategy offers more opportunities to make up ground running a race setup makes sense.

McLaren are unlocking performance and making up for lost time in a way that can only be described as astonishing! No where in testing to P2, P4 is beyond remarkable. Hence I haven't got anything else to say.

Mercedes and Michael Schumacher in particular should be ashamed of themselves for lying to us! They haven't turned a corner merely used mirrors to give the impression of having turned a corner.

Renault appeared for all intents and purposes to be on the back foot, thanks to Vitaly Petrov they have leapt out of obscurity and into the dream. (only progressive people will get that one).

Mentioned in dispatches:
Kamui Kobayashi who did a stonking job today.
Paul di Resta

Mentioned in disparaging remarks:
Felipe Massa
Nick Heidfeld
Williams
HRT

 

[johnnoble1990]

Uh? The whole point of qualifying is that you do your one fastest lap when needed, preferably at or near the end. There would be no point in going off too hard at the start, then trashing your tyres. But anyway, whatever happened in the rest of the session, he still managed to pull that gap when it mattered.

Don't get me wrong; if you knew me you'd know that I'm one of Hamiltons' biggest fans and have been since his 'Champions of the Future' days. I'm sure that he will make a good fight of the race tomorrow, and even 2nd place would be a dream result given where Mclaren were after winter testing. The encouraging thing for Lewis is that both his and Vettel's times were, by all accounts, set without KERS operational.
Anyway, the thing that pleases me most about the Mclaren turnaround is the effect on Lewis' chances over the whole season, not just the first race.

What i meant was, we shouldn't expect Vettel to be able to pull out a gap of 0.7 seconds per lap tomorrow when he only did it twice in the whole of quali. The Red Bull has the potential to do this over one lap, but Lewis should be able to keep close enough to Vettel that a win is not a given, especially with 3 or 4 pit stops and DRS (if it works). I don't think the gap between Red Bull and Mclaren is anything like what we were seeing last year.

 

[snowy]

Pulling a gap will likely be a lot harder this year, if you are in the lead with the fastest car it will need to be a second a lap quicker at least. Why? Because the car behind you is going to get the use of an adjustable wing every lap and you're not!

 

[FB]

If, as Snowy postulates, Red Bull are running more wing then I don't imagine they will be quite so fast in race pace as they will only be able to use the DSR on one point of the track rather than as they blast out of every turn.

I made a comment in chat about the comparative pace in qualifying versus the race for the Red Bull cars and, typically, the other cars were closer in the race than in qualie through the year. Let's hope the same is true this year or if Vettel scampers off into the distance the drivers behind race each other and the director is bright enough to show them.

 

[Josephiah]

Renault appeared for all intents and purposes to be on the back foot, thanks to Vitaly Petrov they have leapt out of obscurity and into the dream. (only progressive people will get that one).

Baaa?

 

[sportsman]

First things first, where is the Red Bull getting all this performance. Answer: The final sector.

Sect 1 Sect 2 Sect 3
Vet 28.088 22.320 33.045
Ham 28.149 22.399 33.609
Web 28.197 22.643 33.400
But 28.237 22.556 33.777
Alo 28.427 22.549 33.998
Pet 28.443 22.662 34.142
Ros 28.499 22.563 34.041[/pre]

If tyre wear was a concern to Red Bull then they very likely would not out perform everyone in the final sector. So any hopes that the RB is going to have to make more pitstops than their rivals should be dispelled.

Why would the Red Bull perform so well in the final sector?
The answer might well lie in the speed trap records:
Speed trap:

3 N. ROSBERG	313.4

4 J. BUTTON 	312.8

5 L. HAMILTON	312.7

--

11 V. PETROV 	311.1

--

14 F. ALONSO 	309.7

15 F. MASSA 	309.5

16 J. ALGUERS'	309.5

17 S. VETTEL 	308.3

18 M. WEBBER 	308.3 

The Red Bull is running more wing perhaps... creating more downforce, producing more drag. Any way you look at it they are making up time in the corners and using their tyres very well.

I agree snowy.This is the classic Newey Red Bull design as seen last season in the RB6.
The RB6 had a low top speed and achieved all its performance from its cornering speed.
Another point to consider is that Vettel will very quickly be amongst the back markers due to the very slow tail enders some six seconds off the pace.
If he runs away at the start he can easily latch on to a tail ender at the one second activation point and then use his wing on the straight.
Red Bull might even hook up their KERS system for the race due to the heavier fuel loads.

 

[MCLS]

If he runs away at the start he can easily latch on to a tail ender at the one second activation point and then use his wing on the straight.

Admittedly I don't know much about the rear wing system, but cant there be a regulation saying it cant be used when overtaking lapped cars, and that could mean lapped cars use it when unlapping.

 

[sportsman]

There isn't any regulation regarding position.It work on all cars irrespective of race position.