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[Hammer278]

A good detailed article here on McLaren's race with some interesting bits about tyres, pitstops and safety cars.Adam Cooper interviewing Paddy Lowe.

Interestingly Paddy Lowe suggests that had lewis pitted the lap after Button on the second stop, instead of with him, not only would he have stayed ahead of Vettel but may have jumped Button.

"As Whitmarsh says, had Lewis stayed out and pitted the lap after Jenson his second place would have been safe. In fact there's an argument for saying that by so doing he might actually have stolen the lead from his team-mate, in which case their respective demeanours after the race might have been very different..."
http://plus.autosport.com/premium/featu ... nday-gold/

Doesn't matter really. What matters is that Lewis couldn't keep pace with Button which is a real worry. I for one can't wait to see his response in Malaysia, it's the first time I've sort of lost a bit of the 100% confidence I've had in Lewis' race pace. Seeing Button drive away from Lewis at the start was like a major . Hope it's the first and the last time I see that!

[bud]

I was a bit shocked as well to be honest, my initial thought was he was saving tyres but it wasn't the case. From reading afterwards it sounds like JB sets his car up better for high fuel running.

[racechick]

A good detailed article here on McLaren's race with some interesting bits about tyres, pitstops and safety cars.Adam Cooper interviewing Paddy Lowe.

Interestingly Paddy Lowe suggests that had lewis pitted the lap after Button on the second stop, instead of with him, not only would he have stayed ahead of Vettel but may have jumped Button.

"As Whitmarsh says, had Lewis stayed out and pitted the lap after Jenson his second place would have been safe. In fact there's an argument for saying that by so doing he might actually have stolen the lead from his team-mate, in which case their respective demeanours after the race might have been very different..."
http://plus.autosport.com/premium/featu ... nday-gold/

Doesn't matter really. What matters is that Lewis couldn't keep pace with Button which is a real worry. I for one can't wait to see his response in Malaysia, it's the first time I've sort of lost a bit of the 100% confidence I've had in Lewis' race pace. Seeing Button drive away from Lewis at the start was like a major . Hope it's the first and the last time I see that!

Yep. It wasnt the Lewis I watched take F1 by storm in 2007.

[What's Burning?]

It looks as if Red Bull and McLaren did a little bit of role reversal in the off season, Red Bull decided they wanted to improve their race pace, and McLaren decided they wanted to improve their Q pace. There are other factors at play and it looks like RB took perhaps the biggest hit with the loss of EBD but I'm putting my money on the fact that every team right now it gunning for McLaren, and every team right now is seeing McLaren as the car of the filed for 2012, not Reb Bull. So McLaren should put their head down, continue to develop what the car can do, and not look back. Start worrying about championships when you've got a 100 point lead in the WCC.

[vlad]

I really don't know why Hamilton fans underestimate Button that much. Why are you suprised that he's faster than Hamilton on some tracks?

[Hammer278]

I really don't know why Hamilton fans underestimate Button that much. Why are you suprised that he's faster than Hamilton on some tracks?

Speaking for myself, Melbourne 2012 was the first time I've seen Button actually drive away from Hamilton with both having clear air. Hamilton has done it numerous times, which is something I expect...but this is officially the first and I fervently hope, the last.

[myownalias]

I did say going into this season that Jenson had a new found confidence about him after last season's performance, a lot of how well a driver races comes down to confidence, beating Lewis last season was a big confidence booster coming into 2012. Lewis will have to battle hard to beat Jenson this season as proven by Melbourne's performance!

[LewEngBridewell]

It looks as if Red Bull and McLaren did a little bit of role reversal in the off season, Red Bull decided they wanted to improve their race pace, and McLaren decided they wanted to improve their Q pace. There are other factors at play and it looks like RB took perhaps the biggest hit with the loss of EBD but I'm putting my money on the fact that every team right now it gunning for McLaren, and every team right now is seeing McLaren as the car of the filed for 2012, not Reb Bull. So McLaren should put their head down, continue to develop what the car can do, and not look back. Start worrying about championships when you've got a 100 point lead in the WCC.

McLaren are sort of renowned for great car development throughout a season. Hopefully, this will continue to be the case in 2012.

[Ferrari man 009]

Ferrari look poor, it was a miracle that Alonso finished 5th. While I dont think Schumacher would have been able to hold Vettel off for 3rd, he was a lot quicker than Rosberg before he retired, and I am sure he would have finished around Webber, and been in the podium fight after the safety car. The intresting point is which German went off the track through a driver error while they were fighting for 3rd place, oh yes, it was the champion. Vettel would not have passed Schumacher on track, he would have had to wait for the pitstops, which is no guarantee of an overtake.

I thought the race overall was excellent, great battles throughout the field, and that last lap scrap for P6 was amazing

Just think it was a shame that Schumacher's car wasnt reliable as he would have been 5th at worst, as he was quicker than Alonso-Maldonado-Kobayashi-Perez-Rosberg-Kimi-Massa etc.

Massa for me needs to improve fast, or I'd be suprised if he was driving for Ferrari in Brazil. Yes the car is bad, but not bad enough to be 1-2 seconds off your team mate in Qualifying and be fighting for effectively last place (except the Marussia's) when your team mate is 5th! After Lap 1, when they were 8th and 10th, one Ferrari went forwards while the other one fell backwards. If I was Luca, I would be having some words with Felipe. 1st time I have said this - but he isnt good enough for Ferrari!

Well Done to Jenson on a great drive, probably the only driver to have a better race than Alonso - both were stunning and faultless. I am not a McLaren fan, but if I was going down to the bookies, I would be betting on Button for the title.

[vaptin]

Although I imagine the team starting from behind would usually develop proportionally faster than the team in front. Easier to make a relatively slow car fast than a fast car faster.

Redbull had the same upgrades on their car that they brought to Barcelona, and they didn't work.

McLaren it seems were very comfortable with their car, having their Australia package almost complete at the start of the final pre-season test. Maybe it's a sign McLaren's car is more conservative, and is already close to it's peak.

I don't know, but that's why the first race has set us up nicely, the grid seems close enough for small variables and fine details to really matter.

[bud]

Although I imagine the team starting from behind would usually develop proportionally faster than the team in front. Easier to make a relatively slow car fast than a fast car faster.

Redbull had the same upgrades on their car that they brought to Barcelona, and they didn't work.

McLaren it seems were very comfortable with their car, having their Australia package almost complete at the start of the final pre-season test. Maybe it's a sign McLaren's car is more conservative, and is already close to it's peak.

I don't know, but that's why the first race has set us up nicely, the grid seems close enough for small variables and fine details to really matter.

No car is at its peak at the first race

[calvins48]

Why is everybody taking Australia as if there's only one race to go until the end of the season?



It's race ONE of NINETEEN! So much can happen over the course of the season! A smart man would'nt make a bet for Button to win the title just because he won in Oz. There's so many 'what ifs' to come from that race that one can not judge the entire season on a race like that.

What if Hamilton got a better start than Button? Would Button have been able to catch and pass Hamilton?
What if Hamilton came out in front of Perez after the first pit stops? Would he have kept his 4 second gap behind Button and later caught him?
What if there was no Safety Car? Would Vettel have caught and passed Hamilton?

Yes, it's true that the race winner from Melbourne has often gone on to take the title, but what if there was a major fluke and someone like Bruno Senna had won in Oz? Would everyone be tipping him for the 2012 WDC? Having said that, having the Senna name back up in the mix would be pretty awesome!

[Hammer278]

One more statistic for a Melbourne winner...DC won it in 2003 I believe...and that was the last race he won in 2003.

Oh, and Kimi came 3rd that race...and went on to challenge for the WDC until the final race.

[zurich_allan]

Although I imagine the team starting from behind would usually develop proportionally faster than the team in front. Easier to make a relatively slow car fast than a fast car faster.

Redbull had the same upgrades on their car that they brought to Barcelona, and they didn't work.

McLaren it seems were very comfortable with their car, having their Australia package almost complete at the start of the final pre-season test. Maybe it's a sign McLaren's car is more conservative, and is already close to it's peak.

I don't know, but that's why the first race has set us up nicely, the grid seems close enough for small variables and fine details to really matter.

No car is at its peak at the first race

Unless you're Renault and it's 2011 (well ok, the second race!!)

[acosmichippo]

One more statistic for a Melbourne winner...DC won it in 2003 I believe...and that was the last race he won in 2003.

Oh, and Kimi came 3rd that race...and went on to challenge for the WDC until the final race.

One more little-known statistic... in 2011, Sebastian Vettel won the Australian GP, and went on to dominate the rest of the season.