Jack Leslie F1: 2016 Australian Grand Prix In Pictures

The Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, always produces some spectacular racing, with a stunning backdrop too.

Nico Rosberg beat team-mate Lewis Hamilton to victory, with Sebastian Vettel in third. Here is the Australian Grand Prix race weekend in pictures.

Friday

First practice took place in unusual conditions, with a mix of wet and dry weather in Melbourne as light rain showers passed over the track.

The track did dry out enough for some running on slick tyres to take place. Max Verstappen was one of the drivers who made errors in the tricky conditions, suffering a mid-session spin.

Jolyon Palmer was one of three drivers who debuted as a race driver in FP1, alongside Pascal Wehrlein and Rio Haryanto.

Hamilton was quickest for Mercedes in first practice, finishing four tenths clear of Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo.

Rosberg's fortunes took a hit in second practice after an early crash, which forced him to sit on the sidelines and watch for the rest of the session.

It was a busy but productive first day for the new Haas F1 team despite the weather conditions, and the VF-16 showed decent pace.

Hamilton was quickest in second practice too with a 1:29.725, four tenths ahead of Nico Hulkenberg, Kimi Raikkonen and Ricciardo.

Saturday

Haryanto's third practice didn't get off to the best start, he crashed into Romain Grosjean's Haas as he exited the pitlane.

Teams got plenty of dry running in during third practice, Hamilton completed a clean-sweep of practice to finish quickest.

The new qualifying format debuted in Australia and like this Turn 1 corner attempt from Rosberg, it failed pretty massively. The old system will return for Bahrain.

The new elimination format produced dull sessions. Felipe Nasr, Marcus Ericsson, Daniil Kvyat, Romain Grosjean, Esteban Gutierrez, Haryanto and Wehrlein were all eliminated in Q1.

Sergio Perez and Hulkenberg secured the prime spots in Q2 with ninth and 10th, getting free tyre choice for the race. Valtteri Bottas, Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Jolyon Palmer and Kevin Magnussen were also eliminated in the second session.

Verstappen impressed by qualifying fifth, ahead of Felipe Massa, Carlos Sainz Jr and Ricciardo next up in Q3.

Hamilton secured pole position in the low-key Q3, with Rosberg qualifying second, ahead of Vettel and Raikkonen.

Sunday

The class of 2016 gathered on the pit straight for a pre-season picture, with three rookies on the grid.

The atmosphere was typically electric ahead of the new F1 season, with the drivers' parade taking place shortly before the start.

Tensions were high as the start approached, could Hamilton capitalise on his starting position and lead into Turn 1?

The answer to that was no. Vettel took the lead after a lightning start, with Hamilton slipping to fourth and then losing several more places on the opening lap.

Hamilton's first lap wasn't helped by being squeezed onto the Turn 1 grass by Mercedes team-mate Rosberg.

Behind there was plenty of close racing as the pack battled for position. Magnussen suffered a puncture and dropped down the order.

The Haas and Manor cars chased the rest of the field through the opening few corners, Wehrlein had a storming launch from the line and moved up several places.

Vettel opened up a small lead over team-mate Raikkonen and Rosberg, showing strong pace in the Ferrari.

Magnussen went one lap down after his early puncture and struggled to make up ground, but things quickly changed.

Grosjean mixed it up in the midfield in the opening part of the season opener, moving up the order on the soft tyre as others pitted.

The race took a huge turn when Alonso and Gutierrez collided in dramatic fashion, bringing out the red flag and producing a variety of strategies.

On the restart Vettel led from Rosberg, who passed Raikkonen at the first stops, while Hamilton looked to make up more ground behind.

Grosjean switched to the mediums after the red flag and spent the final part of the race fighting off faster cars in sixth place.

Ricciardo bounced back from a disappointing qualifying, making up ground and rising to fourth place.

Rosberg and Hamilton went for the mediums after the red flag and it worked out well, they moved ahead of Vettel and hit the front of the field.

Rosberg claimed victory at the first round of the 2016 season, with Hamilton second to make it a Mercedes one-two.

Vettel was third, with his strategy failing to work out. A mistake late in the race also cost him the chance to fight for a better result.

22 March 2016

2016 Australian Grand Prix In Pictures

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