The Formula 1 circus returned to action at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, for the opening round of the 2016 season.
It was the 32nd Australian Grand Prix in the championship's history and the 21st race to take place at the temporary street circuit, set in beautiful parkland.
Teams and drivers had eight days to prepare for the season opener, with winter testing place in Spain. Australia marked the first race weekend for three drivers - Jolyon Palmer, Pascal Wehrlein and Rio Haryanto - and one team, Haas F1.
FP1
First practice for the Australian Grand Prix took place in mixed conditions. Overnight rain meant the track surface was damp for the start of the 90-minute session and it dried out several times, only for wet weather to reappear.
Lewis Hamilton set the pace for Mercedes with a 1:29.725, set in the closing stages just prior to the final rain shower arriving.
He finished four tenths clear of Daniil Kvyat, with Daniel Ricciardo third in the other Red Bull RB12 despite beaching it in the Turn 12 gravel trap with just one minute left on the clock. Nico Hulkenberg briefly topped the timesheets but eventually fell to fourth, with Max Verstappen fifth.
The Toro Rosso driver suffered a mid-session spin, while Kimi Raikkonen and Rio Haryanto took to the run-off areas. Nico Rosberg, Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Sergio Perez and Kevin Magnussen completed the top 10.
Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa were 11th and 12th for Williams. Raikkonen was 17th, behind Wehrlein and ahead of Esteban Gutierrez, Haryanto and Romain Grosjean. Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz Jr failed to set times.
FP2
Hamilton topped the timesheets in second practice at the Albert Park Circuit, but it was Rosberg who stole the headlines after an early crash at Turn 7 just 30 minutes into the session.
Running took place in tricky conditions following heavy rain between FP1 and FP2. With the track remaining damp for the majority of the session, Hamilton’s best time of 1:29.725 was well off the morning pace.
The rain meant running was more limited, with Hulkenberg finishing second for Force India. He was four tenths adrift, with Raikkonen, Ricciardo and Sainz next up. Alonso and Button were just over one second off the front-running pace in sixth and seventh.
Vettel was eighth, with Perez – who had looked to improve until a rain shower hit the final sector – in ninth and Kvyat rounding out the top 10. Gutierrez was 11th, with Grosjean 13th, between the Manor duo of Wehrlein and Haryanto.
Rosberg did set a time and was 15th after his crash, while Magnussen, Jolyon Palmer, Massa and Bottas managed only installation laps. Verstappen, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr failed to take to the circuit at all.
FP3
Hamilton completed a practice clean-sweep by setting the pace for Mercedes on Saturday morning, as drivers and teams finally got to complete some serious running in completely dry conditions.
The British driver switched to the super-soft tyre in the final minutes and jumped up to first place with a 1:25.624, finishing just under two tenths clear of his team-mate Rosberg. Vettel was a little way further back.
Toro Rosso showed encouraging pace with Sainz Jr and Verstappen fourth and sixth, sandwiching Raikkonen. Bottas, Ricciardo, Massa and Perez completed the top 10, ahead of the McLaren duo of Alonson and Button. Kvyat was 13th, with Ericsson, Magnussen and Hulkenberg next up.
Palmer took a late trip through the gravel and finished 17th. Gutierrez and Grosjean were 18th and 19th, the former missing some running early on after he was hit by Haryanto in the pit lane. Nasr, Wehrlein and Haryanto rounded out the results.
Qualifying
Hamilton has secured the first pole position of the 2016 season for Mercedes after F1’s new qualifying format debuted at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne.
It was a low-key debut for the new system. The triple world champion put in a strong banker lap but improved with a few minutes remaining to a 1:23.837.
Rosberg was unable to beat him and qualified second. Vettel and Raikkonen climbed out of their cars well before being eliminated and qualified third and fourth on the grid. Verstappen impressed for Toro Rosso and was fifth in Q3, the fourth in the session to be eliminated.
Massa and Sainz Jr failed to emerge for a final lap and were eliminated in sixth and seventh. Home hero Ricciardo was the first to exit Q3 and qualified in eighth place, failing to reach the line in time to improve.
Perez and Hulkenberg were the final drivers to pick up their grid positions in the second session, missing out on progressing to Q3. Bottas made a mistake on his last lap and was 11th. Alonso qualified 12th after Sainz Jr improved just prior to the elimination.
His McLaren team-mate Button was still in the garage when he dropped out and qualified 13th.
The Renault duo of Magnussen and Palmer were the first to be eliminated after six minutes of frantic running early on, qualifying 15th and 14th respectively.
Q1 saw seven minutes of uninterrupted running before drivers started to be eliminated every 90 seconds. Nasr and Ericsson qualified 16th and 17th after being the last two drivers to drop out of the session.
Kvyat was in the pits and took 18th place on the grid, joining the Haas duo of Gutierrez and Grosjean in the drop-zone.
Manor’s Haryanto, who has a three-place grid penalty for hitting Grosjean in FP3, was the second driver to be eliminated. Wehrlein was the first, but will start 21st due to team-mate Haryanto’s penalty.
The Race
With new tyre and radio rules to hopefully mix things up, there were high expectations for the opening round of the 2016 season. Hamilton claimed pole position but could Rosberg fight back?
The revs rose, the lights went out and the Australian Grand Prix got underway in Melbourne. Hamilton had a difficult start and dropped to fourth, as Vettel and Raikkonen stormed to the front. Rosberg fell to third place on the exit of Turn 1, tagging his team-mate's front wing in the process.
Perez lost two positions while behind there was plenty of racing in the midfield. Magnussen picked up a puncture after contact at Turn 2 and was forced to pit at the end of the first lap. Vettel quickly started to pull away from the chasing pack, while Hamilton dropped two more positions to sixth.
The British driver started his recovery, displacing Massa for fifth place on the fourth lap. By lap five, Vettel's advantage at the front was over two seconds after his storming opening tour of the Albert Park Circuit. Meanwhile Ricciardo passed Hulkenberg for eighth.
Sainz Jr was the second driver to pit and the first to complete a scheduled stop, switching to the soft tyre on lap nine. Meanwhile as he exited the pitlane, Bottas displaced Ericsson for 14th. On the following tour Ricciardo moved ahead of Massa for sixth.
Hamilton struggled to get past Verstappen and radioed his frustration to Mercedes, while ahead Rosberg kept in touch with Raikkonen. Nasr and Massa pitted on lap 11 for the softs, while Sainz Jr started to move through the backmarkers after his early stop.
Rosberg was the first front-runner to switch to the soft tyre and emerged alongside Hulkenberg, just staying ahead of the Force India.
Vettel stopped on the next lap and went for another set of super-softs, unlike the rest of the field. Raikkonen briefly took over the lead before pitting on lap 17.
The Finn went for the super-softs, like Vettel, but Hamilton also stopped and went for the mediums. The Safety Car was deployed at the end of the lap after a huge crash for Alonso. His McLaren ended up upside down after contact with the Haas of Gutierrez on the run to Turn 3. The red flag emerged to clear up the debris.
Following a considerable stoppage, the race resumed on lap 20. Drivers were able to change tyres, with a real mix up the order. Vettel and Raikkonen remained on super-softs, while the Mercedes duo went for the mediums.
Vettel enjoyed a strong restart to pull away from Rosberg, while Ricciardo and Verstappen battling for fourth. Button moved up two places in quick succession to advance up to 13th. Raikkonen's day turned sour on lap 23, his Ferrari was hit by an issue and the 2007 world champion was forced to pit with a fire. He retired from the race after quickly exiting the SF16-H.
Vettel's lead was 3.7 seconds by lap 25, with Ricciardo some distance behind in third. Hamilton was still struggling to make up ground and was running sixth, just behind Sainz Jr.
Having lost out to Perez, Button pitted to switch from the super-softs to mediums on lap 32. Sainz Jr, Verstappen and Wehrlein did the same over the next few laps.
The gap between Vettel and Rosberg closed up as the Ferrari driver started to come into difficulties on the super-soft tyre.
The leader pitted on lap 36, promoting Rosberg to first place, but it was a slow stop and he lost several crucial seconds.
Palmer, Sainz Jr and Verstappen were involved in an intense scrap for ninth, with Perez joining the party a little while later. Hamilton moved ahead of Ricciardo for second on lap 42 at the first corner. Unable to make the soft tyres last, Ricciardo quickly pitted for a fresh set of boots.
The Australian soon caught and passed Massa for fourth. Verstappen became more and more frustrated behind his team-mate Sainz Jr, as the two Toro Rossos closed in on the battle for sixth. The fight for second heated up on lap 51 after Hamilton outbraked himself at Turn 9.
As Hamilton and Vettel battled for position, Verstappen just clipped his team-mate at the penultimate corner and spun. However, he retained 10th. The fight for second ended with three laps to go after Vettel ran wide at the penultimate corner and dropped back.
Rosberg crossed the finish line seven seconds clear of his team-mate to win the 2016 season opener in Australia. After a difficult start, the German bounced back with a stunning recovery to claim victory. Hamilton recovered to second to give Mercedes a one-two, with Vettel in third for Ferrari.
Ricciardo was fourth on home soil, ahead of Massa and a delighted Grosjean, giving Haas points on the team's debut. Hulkeberg and Bottas were seventh and eighth, just holding off Sainz Jr and Verstappen, who rounded out the top 10.
Palmer was 11th in his first race, beating team-mate Magnussen. Perez and Button were 13th and 14th. Nasr was next up for Sauber, with Wehrlein coming home 16th and last on his debut in F1. Six drivers retired, including Raikkonen and Alonso.
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| © Octane Photographic |
Teams and drivers had eight days to prepare for the season opener, with winter testing place in Spain. Australia marked the first race weekend for three drivers - Jolyon Palmer, Pascal Wehrlein and Rio Haryanto - and one team, Haas F1.
FP1
First practice for the Australian Grand Prix took place in mixed conditions. Overnight rain meant the track surface was damp for the start of the 90-minute session and it dried out several times, only for wet weather to reappear.
 |
| © Octane Photographic |
Lewis Hamilton set the pace for Mercedes with a 1:29.725, set in the closing stages just prior to the final rain shower arriving.
He finished four tenths clear of Daniil Kvyat, with Daniel Ricciardo third in the other Red Bull RB12 despite beaching it in the Turn 12 gravel trap with just one minute left on the clock. Nico Hulkenberg briefly topped the timesheets but eventually fell to fourth, with Max Verstappen fifth.
The Toro Rosso driver suffered a mid-session spin, while Kimi Raikkonen and Rio Haryanto took to the run-off areas. Nico Rosberg, Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Sergio Perez and Kevin Magnussen completed the top 10.
Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa were 11th and 12th for Williams. Raikkonen was 17th, behind Wehrlein and ahead of Esteban Gutierrez, Haryanto and Romain Grosjean. Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz Jr failed to set times.
FP2
Hamilton topped the timesheets in second practice at the Albert Park Circuit, but it was Rosberg who stole the headlines after an early crash at Turn 7 just 30 minutes into the session.
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| © Octane Photographic |
Running took place in tricky conditions following heavy rain between FP1 and FP2. With the track remaining damp for the majority of the session, Hamilton’s best time of 1:29.725 was well off the morning pace.
The rain meant running was more limited, with Hulkenberg finishing second for Force India. He was four tenths adrift, with Raikkonen, Ricciardo and Sainz next up. Alonso and Button were just over one second off the front-running pace in sixth and seventh.
Vettel was eighth, with Perez – who had looked to improve until a rain shower hit the final sector – in ninth and Kvyat rounding out the top 10. Gutierrez was 11th, with Grosjean 13th, between the Manor duo of Wehrlein and Haryanto.
Rosberg did set a time and was 15th after his crash, while Magnussen, Jolyon Palmer, Massa and Bottas managed only installation laps. Verstappen, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr failed to take to the circuit at all.
FP3
Hamilton completed a practice clean-sweep by setting the pace for Mercedes on Saturday morning, as drivers and teams finally got to complete some serious running in completely dry conditions.
 |
| © Octane Photographic |
The British driver switched to the super-soft tyre in the final minutes and jumped up to first place with a 1:25.624, finishing just under two tenths clear of his team-mate Rosberg. Vettel was a little way further back.
Toro Rosso showed encouraging pace with Sainz Jr and Verstappen fourth and sixth, sandwiching Raikkonen. Bottas, Ricciardo, Massa and Perez completed the top 10, ahead of the McLaren duo of Alonson and Button. Kvyat was 13th, with Ericsson, Magnussen and Hulkenberg next up.
Palmer took a late trip through the gravel and finished 17th. Gutierrez and Grosjean were 18th and 19th, the former missing some running early on after he was hit by Haryanto in the pit lane. Nasr, Wehrlein and Haryanto rounded out the results.
Qualifying
Hamilton has secured the first pole position of the 2016 season for Mercedes after F1’s new qualifying format debuted at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne.
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| © Octane Photographic |
It was a low-key debut for the new system. The triple world champion put in a strong banker lap but improved with a few minutes remaining to a 1:23.837.
Rosberg was unable to beat him and qualified second. Vettel and Raikkonen climbed out of their cars well before being eliminated and qualified third and fourth on the grid. Verstappen impressed for Toro Rosso and was fifth in Q3, the fourth in the session to be eliminated.
Massa and Sainz Jr failed to emerge for a final lap and were eliminated in sixth and seventh. Home hero Ricciardo was the first to exit Q3 and qualified in eighth place, failing to reach the line in time to improve.
Perez and Hulkenberg were the final drivers to pick up their grid positions in the second session, missing out on progressing to Q3. Bottas made a mistake on his last lap and was 11th. Alonso qualified 12th after Sainz Jr improved just prior to the elimination.
His McLaren team-mate Button was still in the garage when he dropped out and qualified 13th.
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| © Octane Photographic |
The Renault duo of Magnussen and Palmer were the first to be eliminated after six minutes of frantic running early on, qualifying 15th and 14th respectively.
Q1 saw seven minutes of uninterrupted running before drivers started to be eliminated every 90 seconds. Nasr and Ericsson qualified 16th and 17th after being the last two drivers to drop out of the session.
Kvyat was in the pits and took 18th place on the grid, joining the Haas duo of Gutierrez and Grosjean in the drop-zone.
Manor’s Haryanto, who has a three-place grid penalty for hitting Grosjean in FP3, was the second driver to be eliminated. Wehrlein was the first, but will start 21st due to team-mate Haryanto’s penalty.
The Race
With new tyre and radio rules to hopefully mix things up, there were high expectations for the opening round of the 2016 season. Hamilton claimed pole position but could Rosberg fight back?
 |
| © Octane Photographic |
The revs rose, the lights went out and the Australian Grand Prix got underway in Melbourne. Hamilton had a difficult start and dropped to fourth, as Vettel and Raikkonen stormed to the front. Rosberg fell to third place on the exit of Turn 1, tagging his team-mate's front wing in the process.
Perez lost two positions while behind there was plenty of racing in the midfield. Magnussen picked up a puncture after contact at Turn 2 and was forced to pit at the end of the first lap. Vettel quickly started to pull away from the chasing pack, while Hamilton dropped two more positions to sixth.
The British driver started his recovery, displacing Massa for fifth place on the fourth lap. By lap five, Vettel's advantage at the front was over two seconds after his storming opening tour of the Albert Park Circuit. Meanwhile Ricciardo passed Hulkenberg for eighth.
Sainz Jr was the second driver to pit and the first to complete a scheduled stop, switching to the soft tyre on lap nine. Meanwhile as he exited the pitlane, Bottas displaced Ericsson for 14th. On the following tour Ricciardo moved ahead of Massa for sixth.
Hamilton struggled to get past Verstappen and radioed his frustration to Mercedes, while ahead Rosberg kept in touch with Raikkonen. Nasr and Massa pitted on lap 11 for the softs, while Sainz Jr started to move through the backmarkers after his early stop.
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| © Octane Photographic |
Rosberg was the first front-runner to switch to the soft tyre and emerged alongside Hulkenberg, just staying ahead of the Force India.
Vettel stopped on the next lap and went for another set of super-softs, unlike the rest of the field. Raikkonen briefly took over the lead before pitting on lap 17.
The Finn went for the super-softs, like Vettel, but Hamilton also stopped and went for the mediums. The Safety Car was deployed at the end of the lap after a huge crash for Alonso. His McLaren ended up upside down after contact with the Haas of Gutierrez on the run to Turn 3. The red flag emerged to clear up the debris.
Following a considerable stoppage, the race resumed on lap 20. Drivers were able to change tyres, with a real mix up the order. Vettel and Raikkonen remained on super-softs, while the Mercedes duo went for the mediums.
Vettel enjoyed a strong restart to pull away from Rosberg, while Ricciardo and Verstappen battling for fourth. Button moved up two places in quick succession to advance up to 13th. Raikkonen's day turned sour on lap 23, his Ferrari was hit by an issue and the 2007 world champion was forced to pit with a fire. He retired from the race after quickly exiting the SF16-H.
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| © Octane Photographic |
Vettel's lead was 3.7 seconds by lap 25, with Ricciardo some distance behind in third. Hamilton was still struggling to make up ground and was running sixth, just behind Sainz Jr.
Having lost out to Perez, Button pitted to switch from the super-softs to mediums on lap 32. Sainz Jr, Verstappen and Wehrlein did the same over the next few laps.
The gap between Vettel and Rosberg closed up as the Ferrari driver started to come into difficulties on the super-soft tyre.
The leader pitted on lap 36, promoting Rosberg to first place, but it was a slow stop and he lost several crucial seconds.
Palmer, Sainz Jr and Verstappen were involved in an intense scrap for ninth, with Perez joining the party a little while later. Hamilton moved ahead of Ricciardo for second on lap 42 at the first corner. Unable to make the soft tyres last, Ricciardo quickly pitted for a fresh set of boots.
The Australian soon caught and passed Massa for fourth. Verstappen became more and more frustrated behind his team-mate Sainz Jr, as the two Toro Rossos closed in on the battle for sixth. The fight for second heated up on lap 51 after Hamilton outbraked himself at Turn 9.
As Hamilton and Vettel battled for position, Verstappen just clipped his team-mate at the penultimate corner and spun. However, he retained 10th. The fight for second ended with three laps to go after Vettel ran wide at the penultimate corner and dropped back.
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| © Octane Photographic |
Rosberg crossed the finish line seven seconds clear of his team-mate to win the 2016 season opener in Australia. After a difficult start, the German bounced back with a stunning recovery to claim victory. Hamilton recovered to second to give Mercedes a one-two, with Vettel in third for Ferrari.
Ricciardo was fourth on home soil, ahead of Massa and a delighted Grosjean, giving Haas points on the team's debut. Hulkeberg and Bottas were seventh and eighth, just holding off Sainz Jr and Verstappen, who rounded out the top 10.
Palmer was 11th in his first race, beating team-mate Magnussen. Perez and Button were 13th and 14th. Nasr was next up for Sauber, with Wehrlein coming home 16th and last on his debut in F1. Six drivers retired, including Raikkonen and Alonso.
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