Grand Prix 2012 Australian Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Gentleman, start your engines

Despite it feeling only a few weeks since the season ending Brazilian Grand Prix last November the Australian Grand Prix is coming very quickly into view to start of a season which hopefully promises to be a lot closer than the 2011 season where Sebastian Vettel ran away with the Championship and had it virtually won by mid season.

Looking at testing and it is virtually impossible to see who is in the best shape going into the season opener apart from that Mclaren and Red Bull are the two teams in the best shape which really isn't surprising but the big surprise is the continual lack of pace from Ferrari despite a radical new car (the issues I commented on on a previous thread).

As for the midfield it is anyone's guess as all the midfield have all been up and down the testing rankings throughout the winter and it'll only be qualifying where we see a true reflection of where the grid is in terms of reliability. Without a doubt Lotus have had the most work to do after they had to make a major chassis change involving suspension mounts which meant abandoning one of the test sessions but that doesn't seem to have had a major effect on the team and with Kimi Raikkonen at the wheel it is hoped that they can challenge Mercedes after a fairly disappointing 2011 after a strong start.

Once again HRT are the joke of the entire grid as they once again go into the first race of the season without having so much as turned the wheel before after crash test problems earlier this year and it will be a miracle if they actually qualify as they failed to do so in Melbourne in 2011, but they could be joined by Marussia who have also had problems with their new car and have had to test with a modified 2011 car recently and they will also be struggling to even qualify for Melbourne which isn't good news for the team unless they can pull a rabbit out of the hat with the new car.

This seasons cars (apart from Mclaren) are characterised by the distinctive stepped nose due to new regulations about front wing height and this is how the vast majority of teams have interpreted this rule and it seems that only Mclaren are running a 'smooth' nose and it remains to be seen whether this was a correct decision and one that can mean they can challenge for the title after an average 2011 (unless you're Button of course)

For the British viewers 2012 is going to be a completely different viewing experience as Formula One is going to be broadcast on satellite television for the first time. When it was announced that Sky would be broadcasting F1 with BBC showing only half of the races (live) it was met with uproar from all quarters but as more details have been announced, many fans (me included) are rather looking forward to the full F1 package that is being provided this season with the F1 channel being launched in a matter of days!

For Galahads brilliant circuit write up, see here http://cliptheapex.com/pages/melbourne-grand-prix-circuit-albert-park/
 
My understanding is that Ferrari dropped their exhaust layout when they realized it needed further development. Their intention is to complete that work and reintroduce it reasonably early in the European season, though they haven't committed to an exact date.

Sounds like the octo-exhaust of last year.
 
An interesting innovation on the horizon that McLaren seem to have come up with and may already have on their car or could be putting on at the first race. It is essentially a DRS that when it is deployed also stalls the wing and therefore has the same kind of effect as an F-duct, but used in a passive way.

This has been talked about in an Autosport article, that you can see here:- http://i42.tinypic.com/fuvqep.jpg

I had a little conversation with a friend on twitter about it who knows a little more technically than me and here's what he had to say:-

"The key I think is regs preventing non-closed sections in rear wing don't apply on the 5cms in the middle, I read Scarbs (IIRC).

So you could have a slot in the main plane in those central 5cm designed to stall it completely or partially at a certain speed

If it's not just a rumour, and proves to be effective, more teams will probably copy, yeah

I don't think you could consider it legal if it has moving parts, even if they're related also to the DRS. But yeah, how you link that passive system to the DRS can be kind of tricky. Expect legality arguments ;)"
 
Got my £5 on Hamilton to win the first race. 5/1. So hope he can return to the form of 2007-early 2010. There isn't a more exciting driver on the grid to watch when he's not behind Massa.
 
There will be 2 DRS zones in Australia, according to PlanetF1, although no information on where on the track.
 
I'm guessing on the start/finish straight and the run up to turn 13. I just hope they put one between turns 2 and 3.
 
I hope so, I'd like to see them at 2 completely different parts, that way there aint any DRS re-overtakes
 
I'd go for the main straight and the approach to turn 3. We saw last year that the main straight on its own wasn't enough to get the job done, so I don't expect many pass/re-pass situations, if any. The question I suppose is whether the pursuer can stay close enough in Turns 1/2.
 
You don't see much overtaking into 'Ascari' probably to do with the breaking zones, and also why does nobody ever use the corner names?
 
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