Australia 2010

'SO THE PROMISE OF THE 2010 SEASON STILL HAS TO EMERGE. WE CAN ONLY HOPE THAT THE NEXT RACE IN AUSTRALIA DELIVERS A MORE EXCITING EVENT.'

THAT WAS THE LAST LINE OF THE REPORT OF THE BAHRAIN GP. WELL, AUSTRALIA CAN CERTAINLY DELIVER EXCITEMENT IN BUCKET LOADS. THIS TIME IT WAS ALMOST ENTIRELY DOWN TO THE WEATHER, WHICH TURNED WET A FEW MINUTES BEFORE THE START LEADING TO ALL THE CARS STARTING THE RACE ON THE INTERMEDIATE TYRES.

A WET TRACK ALWAYS SHAKES UP THE FIELD AND LEADS AUTOMATICALLY TO CHANCES BEING TAKEN AND CHANCES GOING WRONG. UNFORTUNATELY, WE CANNOT GUARANTEE WET RACING AT EVERY GRAND PRIX AND SO THE BASIC PROBLEM REMAINS - THE CARS CANNOT FOLLOW EACH OTHER CLOSELY ENOUGH TO PROVIDE OVERTAKING OPPORTUNITIES. BUT LET'S JUST BE THANKFUL FOR THIS RACE!

TURN 1 PROVIDED THE EXPECTED DRAMA - FERNANDO ALONSO ENDED UP FACING THE WRONG WAY AFTER CONTACT BETWEEN HIM AND JENSON BUTTON AND, IN TURN, THIS PUSHED MICHAEL SCHUMACHER ONTO THE GRASS. SHORTLY AFTERWARDS, KAMUI KOBAYASHI SEEMED TO SUFFER HIS SECOND WING FAILURE OF THE WEEKEND IN THE SAUBER AND TORPEDOED NICO HULKENBERG'S WILLIAMS. THE RESULTING CARNAGE BROUGHT OUT THE FIRST AND, SURPRISINGLY, ONLY SAFETY CAR.

SEBASTIEN VETTEL HELD THE EARLY LEAD WITH FELIPE MASSA AND MARK WEBBER IN CLOSE ATTENDANCE. THE RAIN THEN EASED OFF AFTER A FEW LAPS AND, BEFORE A DRY LINE APPEARED, JENSON BUTTON, THEN IN 8TH PLACE, SHOT INTO THE PITS TO CHANGE TO DRY WEATHER TYRES. THIS SORT OF OPPORTUNISM CAN EITHER BE INSPIRED OR EMBARRASSING DEPENDING ON THE OUTCOME. THREE TURNS AFTER EMERGING FROM THE PITS, IT LOOKED TO BE THE LATTER AS HE SLID OFF INTO THE GRAVEL.

HOWEVER, HE KEPT THE CAR MOVING AND ESCAPED THE GRAVEL'S CLUTCHES AND BEFORE LONG HE WAS 2 SECONDS A LAP QUICKER THAN THE LEADERS AND ALMOST ALL THE FIELD, EXCEPT THE TWO RED BULL CARS, DIVED INTO THE PITS TO CHANGE TYRES. THIS ALLOWED THE FLYING JENSON TO GAIN TRACK POSITION AND, AFTER THE RED BULLS ALSO CHANGED TYRES, HE WAS IN 2ND PLACE BEHIND SEBASTIEN.

CLEARLY, JENSON HAD A PLAN BECAUSE HE DID NOT ATTEMPT TO CHALLENGE THE SPEED OF THE RED BULL CAR BUT CONCENTRATED ON MAKING THE SOFT TYRES LAST FOR THE NEXT 50 LAPS OR SO TO THE END. AS SEBASTIEN INCREASED HIS LEAD AND LOOKED ODDS-ON TO WIN THIS RACE, THE RED BULL FRAGILITY HIT HIM AGAIN AS IT DID IN BAHRAIN. LAST TIME IT WAS SPARK PLUG FAILURE, THIS TIME IT WAS HIS FRONT BRAKES.

JENSON SAILED INTO THE LEAD AND LOOKED AS GOOD AND SMOOTH AS ONLY JENSON CAN BE - MAINTAINING A FAST PACE WITHOUT DESTROYING HIS TYRES. BEHIND HIM, ROBERT KUBICA WAS DRIVING EQUALLY WELL, BEARING IN MIND THE PROBLEMS RENAULT HAVE FACED IN THE RECENT PAST, AND MANAGED TO FEND OFF LEWIS HAMILTON FOR MANY LAPS DESPITE LEWIS'S ATTACKING DRIVING.

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER, STUCK BEHIND JAIME ALGUERSARI, CHOSE TO PIT AGAIN FOR FRESH RUBBER AND THE TIMES HE WAS THEN CAPABLE OF LED MCLAREN TO CALL IN HAMILTON. THIS ALLOWED FELIPE MASSA AND FERNANDO ALONSO TO TAKE STATION BEHIND THE RENAULT IN A PRIVATE BATTLE BETWEEN THE TWO FERRARI DRIVERS. HAMILTON AND WEBBER THEN BATTLED TOGETHER IN SOME ENTERTAINING LAPS UNTIL A LAP OR TWO FROM THE END WHEN, APPROACHING A STRUGGLING ALONSO, MARK RAN INTO THE BACK OF LEWIS. LEWIS RECOVERED BEST AND FINISHED 6TH, MARK HAD TO SETTLE FOR 9TH.

JENSON'S INSPIRED DECISION, AND IT WAS HIS ALONE, TOOK HIM TO THE CHEQUERED FLAG IN ONLY HIS 2ND RACE FOR MCLAREN - SOMETHING THAT CLEARLY MEANT A LOT TO HIM. HE COMPARED IT FAVOURABLY TO HIS FIRST-EVER GP WIN IN THE WET RACE IN HUNGARY, 2006 AND, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, HE MADE ANOTHER GREAT TYRE DECISION IN THAT RACE WHEN HE PREFERRED TO STAY ON VERY WORN DRY, GROOVED TYRES RATHER THAN CHANGE TO A BRAND NEW SET.

SO, THREE VERY HAPPY DRIVERS FILLED THE PODIUM. THEY ALL HAD REAL ACHIEVEMENTS TO CELEBRATE AND, AS EDDIE JORDAN AFTERWARDS COMMENTED, "NO PUNDIT IN THE WORLD COULD HAVE PREDICTED THAT RESULT".

Race Results posted by
David Little
29th March 2010

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