So the time has come. After the short winter period, thousands of laps completed during the 12 days of winter testing and some off track drama in the process the F1 2012 season is go.
There have been numerous driver changes, team have transformed, new circuits and many friendly faces. The F1 2012 season looks like it will be a cracker, with the order completely unknown and if testing has anything to go by, it will be a close fought battle.
I have my first race review of the season, with summaries of Practice, Qualifying and the Race. I will also be tweeting during every single race so follow me at @JackLeslieF1.
Melbourne is one of the driver and team’s favourite tracks. It may not be the most challenging, but it is what every driver and team wants, the start to a season. The running order has been predicted but no firm team has showed dominance throughout testing. The first signal we have to guess the pecking order is practice, but Friday gave us no clear indication.
Free Practice 1
Pos Driver Team Time Gap
1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m24.922s
2. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m25.074s + 0.152
3. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1m25.302s + 0.380
4. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m25.336s + 0.414
5. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m25.651s + 0.729
6. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m25.668s + 0.746
7. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m25.686s + 0.764
8. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1m25.908s + 0.986
9. Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1m26.451s + 1.529
10. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari No time
Q2 cut-off time: 1m26.319s Gap **
11. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m26.429s + 0.960
12. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m26.4942 + 1.025
13. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m26.590s + 1.121
14. Bruno Senna Williams-Renault 1m26.663s + 1.194
15. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m27.086s + 1.617
16. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m27.497s + 2.028
17. Sergio Perez* Sauber-Ferrari No time
Q1 cut-off time: 1m27.633s Gap *
18. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus-Renault 1m27.758s + 1.576
19. Heikki Kovalainen Caterham-Renault 1m28.679s + 2.497
20. Vitaly Petrov Caterham-Renault 1m29.018s + 2.836
21. Timo Glock Marussia-Cosworth 1m30.923s + 4.741
22. Charles Pic Marussia-Cosworth 1m31.670s + 5.488
23. Pedro de la Rosa** HRT-Cosworth 1m33.495s + 7.313
24. Narain Karthikeyan** HRT-Cosworth 1m33.643s + 7.461
GRID CHANGES:
**De La Rosa and Karthikeyan will not race due to being outside the 107% rule in qualifying, the FIA have announced.
*Sergio Perez will take a 5 place grid penalty for a gear box change so will drop to 22nd and last.
With Lewis Hamilton lining up on pole, ahead of Jenson Button and Romain Grosjean, it could be a close season. Qualifying showed it was tight and that the field are close. After the shocks of Raikkonen and Ferrari’s faltering it was Mclaren who lined up on the grid.
The 1st stops are well underway as Alonso and Kobayashi pit on lap 14, showing a 3 stopper. Di Resta follows them in but the Force India is lapping slower than those in front. The stops are getting heated as Webber also pits but the 3 up front have enough grip to continue, will any of them have to cover another driver? In those stops Alonso leaps ahead of Rosberg while Kobayashi fails to pass Massa in the pits. Ted Kravitz on Sky Sports F1 does report Mclaren can do a 2 stopper with their tyre durability. However it’s not the case and the strategy changes as Button pits from the lead. Red Bull responds and Vettel comes in with Maldonado also pitting. It looks like 3 stoppers are ok. However he comes out just ahead of Alonso which shows that the cars that pitted early have had an advantage.
Lewis pits on lap 17 as Alonso lines up for a pass on Vettel. Hamilton emerges just behind Perez, awfully close to colliding, as Vettel closes on different tyres. The Harder white marked tyre seems to be holding up with lap times with Vettel on the yellow soft tyre. A train of Alonso, Vergne (yet to pit), Rosberg and Red Bull’s Mark Webber are fighting for position. Webber looks fast and is soon on the gearbox of Rosberg by lap 19.
Pos Driver Team Time
1. Button McLaren-Mercedes 1h34:09.565
2. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 2.100
3. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 4.000
4. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 4.500
5. Alonso Ferrari + 21.500
6. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 36.700
7. Raikkonen Lotus-Renault + 38.000
8. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 39.400
9. Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 39.500
10. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 39.700
11. Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 39.800
12. Rosberg Mercedes + 57.600
13. Maldonado Williams-Renault + 1 lap
14. Glock Marussia-Cosworth + 1 lap
15. Pic Marussia-Cosworth + 2 laps
16. Senna Williams-Renault + 4 laps
Fastest lap: Button, 1:29.187
Not classified/retirements:
Driver Team On lap
Massa Ferrari 47
Kovalainen Caterham-Renault 42
Petrov Caterham-Renault 37
Schumacher Mercedes 11
Grosjean Lotus-Renault 2
Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1
Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth 1
De la Rosa HRT-Cosworth 1
 |
| (c) Octane Photographic |
I have my first race review of the season, with summaries of Practice, Qualifying and the Race. I will also be tweeting during every single race so follow me at @JackLeslieF1.
Melbourne is one of the driver and team’s favourite tracks. It may not be the most challenging, but it is what every driver and team wants, the start to a season. The running order has been predicted but no firm team has showed dominance throughout testing. The first signal we have to guess the pecking order is practice, but Friday gave us no clear indication.
Free Practice 1
It was Button who topped the times with a 2 tenth deficit to his team mate Lewis Hamilton. As the track dried more cars emerged and the times began to tumble which resulted in Button’s stunning and error free lap time. Other drivers dug deep but no one could better his time. The Mercedes looked fast with Schumacher and Rosberg 3rd and 6th while Alonso salvaged something for Ferrari with the 4th fastest lap, despite the F2012 looking rather twitchy. Red Bull finished 5th and 11th with Webber the faster of the two, Vettel looking like he was struggling a little. Glock and Pic debuted the MR01 and set times some 7 seconds off the pace while HRT only used the session for installation laps.
Free Practice 2
The second session in Australia was a wash out. Standing water and deep puddles offline made it rather treacherous but it soon dried out as the Australian sun powered through the clouds. Mercedes took their spot at the top with Michael Schumacher setting a last minute lap of 1m29.183 to beat the Force India of Nico Hulkenberg by 1 tenth. Alonso finished 4th again while Massa headed Kovalainen in 7th and 8th, with Rosberg and the 2 Red Bull’s within 2 tenths of their times.
The wet track meant dry running was limited to the end of the session and Mclaren completed the session with 15th and 16th for Button and Hamilton. The 1 hour 30 minute practice was tricky with Kobayashi and Ricciardo spinning while a number of other drivers took to the sodden grass. It is fair to say the teams have learnt little on where they will be compared to the rest.
Free Practice 3
The sun was out as the F1 cars took to the track, surrounded by greenery and water. The dry track meant the cars got their first chance to see where they are but many teams took different views on their schedules, whether to concentrate on race or qualifying set up. The Mclaren showed their true pace in the beautiful MP4-27 with Hamilton taking his time at the top of the time sheets. His time of 1m25.681 was just 1 tenth ahead of Romain Grosjean, with his team mate Button 3 tenths back in 4th behind Webber.
Rosberg, Schumacher and Vettel took the positions from 5th to 7th, with the latter actually spinning into the gravel and giving his dry running a premature end. Alonso and Massa failed to impress with 16th and 18th for their best efforts.
Not only did Vettel spin out, fellow German Schumacher took to the gravel before the session ended. Qualifying will be the real test to see who will be where in the 3 sessions.
Qualifying 1
It was an early start for many in Europe. I was up and ready with my laptop open with twitter feeds and the Sky Sports F1 Race Control giving me the red button on my computer. Many predicted a dramatic session and that’s what we all got.
Raikkonen was the 1 casualty to the Q1 drop zone on his return to F1. He struggled throughout the session, surprising many. He joined Kovalainen and Petrov in the drop out zone, surprising to see Caterham further back than expected but they could be stronger in the race.
Marussia qualified ahead of HRT with Glock out qualifying debutant Charles Pic for the race. HRT were way off the pace and outside the 107% rule. The top 20 were separated by just 2.8 seconds with Marussia 4 or 5 seconds off the pace.
Qualifying 2
This is where it really heated up. The midfield pack had already proven to be close but with only 2 or 3 guaranteed spots in Q3 behind the usual Mclaren, Red Bull and Mercedes it was Ferrari who faltered. Alonso spun at turn 1 after just 1 timed lap while Massa could not beat Alonso’s time despite several attempts. Jean-Eric Vergne was the first one inside the drop zone while Alonso managed to stay 12th, with Kobayashi and Senna behind them.
Paul Di Resta failed to make it into Q3 with his team mate progressing through. He only managed 15th on the grid; ahead of Massa and a disappointed Sergio Perez. Progressing through to Q3 were the Mclaren’s, Red Bull’s and Mercedes with Hulkenberg, Ricciardo and Grosjean also moving on.
Qualifying 3
It was the build-up to the climax as the F1 2012 season began with a bang. The Australian Grand Prix grid had already been decided from 24th-11th but the top 10 was the session to watch.
The 10 minute session was structured by 7 drivers doing 2 runs, with Maldonado and Hulkenberg doing a single run and Ricciardo saving tyres in the pits. After the first runs Hamilton was on pole, after a stunning lap which set him 7 tenths ahead of Vettel, Button and the Mercedes. Webber went 2nd with his first run but his last run only put him 5th. Button went 2nd just behind Hamilton while the later pulled out of his final run and into the pits. Vettel slotted into 6th with Grosjean and Schumacher impressively shooting up to 3rd and 4th.
Nico Rosberg was disappointed with 7th after a tough lap while Maldonado and Hulkenberg set times good enough for 8th and 9th. Ricciardo stayed in the pits, something that was extremely common in 2011.
So Hamilton is on pole and Mclaren lock out the front row, for the first time in a long while. Whether they have the fastest race pace is unsure, let’s wait and see.
1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1m24.922s
2. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 1m25.074s + 0.152
3. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 1m25.302s + 0.380
4. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 1m25.336s + 0.414
5. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 1m25.651s + 0.729
6. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1m25.668s + 0.746
7. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1m25.686s + 0.764
8. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 1m25.908s + 0.986
9. Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1m26.451s + 1.529
10. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari No time
Q2 cut-off time: 1m26.319s Gap **
11. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1m26.429s + 0.960
12. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 1m26.4942 + 1.025
13. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1m26.590s + 1.121
14. Bruno Senna Williams-Renault 1m26.663s + 1.194
15. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 1m27.086s + 1.617
16. Felipe Massa Ferrari 1m27.497s + 2.028
17. Sergio Perez* Sauber-Ferrari No time
Q1 cut-off time: 1m27.633s Gap *
18. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus-Renault 1m27.758s + 1.576
19. Heikki Kovalainen Caterham-Renault 1m28.679s + 2.497
20. Vitaly Petrov Caterham-Renault 1m29.018s + 2.836
21. Timo Glock Marussia-Cosworth 1m30.923s + 4.741
22. Charles Pic Marussia-Cosworth 1m31.670s + 5.488
23. Pedro de la Rosa** HRT-Cosworth 1m33.495s + 7.313
24. Narain Karthikeyan** HRT-Cosworth 1m33.643s + 7.461
The Race
It has been highly anticipated for weeks. F1 fans have been waiting for this since November when the lights went out on the 2011 season and now, the 2012 season kicks off.
Sunny skies were over the Albert Part circuit as the eyes of the world fell on Australia. After a muted alarm and a late start I was up and ready for the race too. A lot of uncertainties were being thought, who would be 1st into turn 1? Can a Mclaren win, or could they get the 1-2. Can a Red Bull or Mercedes advance. There were also questions about the tyres. How many stops will there be with the new, less durable tyres?
With Lewis Hamilton lining up on pole, ahead of Jenson Button and Romain Grosjean, it could be a close season. Qualifying showed it was tight and that the field are close. After the shocks of Raikkonen and Ferrari’s faltering it was Mclaren who lined up on the grid.
The engines were rising in tone and the lights were on, the F1 2012 season starts here. Off the grid Hamilton gets some slight wheel spin as Jenson Button takes the lead into turn 1. Webber falls to 9th as Rosberg jumps to 4th. Behind Senna is tapped and a Toro Rosso take to the grass.
Later around the 1st lap Hulkenberg retires as Webber continues with damage. Senna and Pic pit too and Grosjean collides with Maldonado, breaking his steering arm. The McLaren’s pull away as on lap 4 the DRS is ready. Vettel took Rosberg, who passed him into turn 1. Maldonado then goes off at turn 6 on lap 5 and the Ferrari’s capitalise. He’s not the only one who made a mistake, Vettel goes off a turn 1 and the pressure is on from Rosberg.
By lap 8 the gap between Button and Hamilton was over 3 seconds and Vettel closed on Schumacher. On lap 10 Vettel capitalises after Schumacher runs wide at turn 1 and continues very slowly, coasting down the 2nd DRS zone. He is forced to retire and Vettel is released to fight the McLaren’s.
First man into the pits after complaining on the tyre wear is Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, showing the theory of them struggling with tyre wear is true. That brings a train of car into clear air, who were being held up by the Brazilian, including Sergio Perez who was running 10th after starting 22nd. On lap 13 Rosberg comes into the pits and it shows the tyre wear is a lot less durable than before. Perez falls behind Raikkonen and Kobayashi, not shown on TV, but it is true that the cars are a lot less stable.
Lewis pits on lap 17 as Alonso lines up for a pass on Vettel. Hamilton emerges just behind Perez, awfully close to colliding, as Vettel closes on different tyres. The Harder white marked tyre seems to be holding up with lap times with Vettel on the yellow soft tyre. A train of Alonso, Vergne (yet to pit), Rosberg and Red Bull’s Mark Webber are fighting for position. Webber looks fast and is soon on the gearbox of Rosberg by lap 19.
Raikkonen pits on lap 20 as Hamilton attacks Perez and Vettel closes in massively. However Vettel is on the soft tyres and will have to try out the more durable medium compound. However Hamilton gets up the inside at the start of lap 21 with Vettel close back but Perez holds up Vettel instead. Jenson Button is alone in P1 while P2 to P7 of Webber are all in the same straight. Perez is still yet to stop, the only one, with Alonso being held up instead of Hamilton and Vettel. DRS works a treat on the Sauber as Rosberg and Alonso both take him in the DRS zones in turn 1 and 3 respectively.
Lap 25 is the time that Perez pits as Hamilton, in free air, sets fastest lap. However Kobayashi and Raikkonen collide into turn 4 as Kimi forces around the outside of the Sauber. The gap to the leader is being chipped away as Button reports a vibration on the tyre on same lap Perez pits. Hamilton flies around the track lap after lap and is just 8 seconds behind on lap 27. Another car with pace is Raikkonen who gets Massa in the first DRS zone, as Kobayashi then takes him in the 2nd zone. Exciting racing all through the pack see’s the midfield squabbling and the leader’s gap being squeezed down lap by lap.
Massa is the first person to pit twice on lap 29. He has lost places to Di Resta and Vergne on the laps before he pits as they find some pace while the Ferrari falters. The other Ferrari is doing much better and pulls away from Rosberg by lap 30. Webber is right behind as Maldonado closes in on them both in the Williams FW34, much better pace than last year. However Webber radio’s in saying Rosberg is weaving. A failed attempt at turn 10 to pass leads to Rosberg going off the track. The German then pits, just the 2nd driver to take their 2nd stops. He emerges in 11th behind Perez who is going strong and sets the fastest lap on the 32nd lap.
Between laps 32 and 36 the gap to Hamilton is decreasing as Button pits on lap 36. Hamilton pits on the same lap as Vettel carries on. A stunning drill from Mclaren means they emerge in clear air as Vettel continues. Safety Car is dispatched as Petrov retires on the side of the road on the pit straight. Vettel pits and Button has to moderate his speed going around to the Safety Car. Vettel comes out ahead of Hamilton however as Webber and Maldonado pits. This plays into the hands of Vettel as he is right behind Button. Jenson asks on how Vettel’s pace has been while behind the safety car and Mclaren tell him they have more fuel in hand and not to worry.
This could prove juicy for the last third of the race with all cars bunched up. The restart begins with Button from Vettel, Hamilton, Webber, Alonso, Maldonado, Perez, Rosberg, Raikkonen and Kobayashi in the top 10 as Kovalainen retires. There is no DRS for 2 laps so the cars have to overtake unaided. Button has gone and dropped the gun on Vettel as he gets 1 second ahead and out of the DRS zone. Kobayashi makes a move on Raikkonen to take 9th which is impressive without DRS. Button pulls away from Vettel as the DRS is activated in lap 44.
On that same lap Raikkonen reports the Sauber is shedding debris. Meanwhile further forward Maldonado is closing on Alonso as Webber attempts to close the gap on Hamilton. Lots of little battles providing great drama, as on lap 47 both Brazilian drivers, Senna and Massa, collided at turn 4 as both got punctures. All of the top 4 were into the 1m29’s by lap 48 as fuel burned off. On that lap Felipe Massa retires after the collision with Senna. Di Resta gets passed by both Toro Rosso’s on lap 51 through DRS, not where they wanted to be.
Hamilton is under pressure from 53 by Webber as he drops back from Vettel. Battles in the midfield keep the excitement building with the front runners closer than ever. However a fastest lap from Button on lap 56 confirms to Vettel his fight is over. The last lap see’s Pastor Maldonado crash heavily as he hits the wall hard at turn 7.
Jenson Button wins the first race of the 2012 season.
He wins from Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton. Mark Webber finishes just off the podium with Fernando Alonso 5th. Next up is Kobayashi on a great race while behind its all go. Raikkonen finishes 7th after Rosberg goes slowly on the last lap. Perez takes 8th after a 1 stop strategy with Ricciardo and Di Resta rounding out the points after a drag race with several other cars to the flag. Vergne and Rosberg lose out in 11th and 12th with Maldonado taking 13th despite crashing. Glock and Pic round out the finishers after 8 retirements.
It was a stunning and dramatic race with Jenson Button coming out on top. Lewis Hamilton finishes 3rd after taking pole, losing out in the pits to Vettel. It was clear to see however that Button was extremely happy, with Hamilton looking less so. Pos Driver Team Time
1. Button McLaren-Mercedes 1h34:09.565
2. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 2.100
3. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 4.000
4. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 4.500
5. Alonso Ferrari + 21.500
6. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 36.700
7. Raikkonen Lotus-Renault + 38.000
8. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 39.400
9. Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 39.500
10. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 39.700
11. Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 39.800
12. Rosberg Mercedes + 57.600
13. Maldonado Williams-Renault + 1 lap
14. Glock Marussia-Cosworth + 1 lap
15. Pic Marussia-Cosworth + 2 laps
16. Senna Williams-Renault + 4 laps
Fastest lap: Button, 1:29.187
Not classified/retirements:
Driver Team On lap
Massa Ferrari 47
Kovalainen Caterham-Renault 42
Petrov Caterham-Renault 37
Schumacher Mercedes 11
Grosjean Lotus-Renault 2
Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 1
Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth 1
De la Rosa HRT-Cosworth 1
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