March 30, 2023
Aussie Aussie Aussie, oi oi oi! It’s time for F1 to go “Down Under” to the land of snakes, spiders, Valtteri Bottas’ mullet, and “G’day mates”! Here is everything you need to know for the 2023 Australian Grand Prix:
Weekend Schedule (in EST):
The time difference between the US and Australia makes things quite difficult.
Practice 1: Thursday 03/30, 9:30-10:30 PM
Practice 2: Friday 03/31, 1:00-2:00 AM
Practice 3: Friday 03/31, 9:30-10:30 PM
Qualifying: Saturday 04/01, 1:00-2:00 AM
Race: Sunday 04/02, 1:00 AM
 |
Albert Park Circuit |
Melbourne’s Albert Park Circuit typically requires some “breaking-in” because it is also a normal street with road cars regularly driving on it. Grip on the bumpy, slippery surface will improve throughout the weekend as drivers lay rubber down with their laps. Weather reports (and Melbourne native Oscar Piastri) have said that the weather can be unpredictable, so we might get a rain race this weekend. The historic track has 14 corners and 4 DRS zones, one of which is new for this year. Overtaking is hard at this circuit because of its narrow, “one car behind the other” nature, meaning that corners require a more aggressive approach and a strong chassis that can withstand that kind of force. Our weaker links (ahem Ferrari and McLaren) will need to be mindful of this.
Speaking of our favorite teams, Ferrari has had a rough start to the season. They are still regarded as a top team (they aren't actually a weak link), but they have to share the spot for third best with Mercedes. The Italian team has speed but not race pace or reliability. I guess that’s what they get for prioritizing performance over reliability and not listening to anything I have ever said. Anyway, both drivers have said that the team’s goal right now is to figure out their reliability issues and maximize the car’s potential. I don’t see Ferrari repeating Charles Leclerc’s brilliant win from last year’s Australian Grand Prix, but maybe we’ll get a whopping P4 and P5 finish with no DNFs.
 |
Charles Leclerc celebrating his win at the 2022 Australian Grand Prix: a sight we probably won't see for a while. |
Our other favorite team, McLaren, might give us some hope this weekend! Executive Technical Director James Key recently left the team, leading to a restructured technical department with three different subdivisions. This structural change is not a response to the team’s horrible start to the season though, it has been in the works for a couple of months. Nevertheless, new people in executive roles means things will change at McLaren. They have a fast car, there is no denying that, but it just isn’t reliable. Hopefully these changes will be good for the team and spare me more heartache in the future.
AlphaTauri is in a similar position to McLaren with their zero championship points. However, their poor results are not a result of reliability issues. AlphaTauri is struggling with a lack of downforce that makes their car hard to control at high-speeds. In Saudi Arabia, Yuki Tsunoda almost got the team their first point of the season but had to give in to Kevin Magnussen at the end to save his car. Tsunoda’s performance in Jeddah is a sign that there is potential in that AlphaTauri, they just need to fiddle with the car to find it. The team is bringing updates to Australia in hopes that it gives them more downforce, but we won’t know if it really helps until they start testing it during practice.
Kevin Magnussen’s P10 finish in Jeddah gave Haas their first point of the season, raising spirits throughout their garage. Now, the team looks for an even better finish in Australia. Both seasoned drivers know Albert Park well, with Kevin Magnussen even securing a podium here in 2014 on his F1 debut (that is one impressive feat). Haas has performed relatively well by showing improvement from last season and fighting at the front of the midfield. The measure for success among midfield teams has always been points finishes, but Team Principal Guenther Steiner made a good point when he said having four top performing teams limits the number of points of the table and subsequently makes it less of a benchmark. Yes, everyone wants points, but with eight drivers in cars that should be scoring points in every race, there are only two spots left. Even if your team’s car is improving and fighting for positions as “best of the rest”, you might not score points because the top ten doesn’t have enough space for midfield teams anymore. Insightful ideas like this are why we love Guenther.
 |
Cool Man Guenther |
Williams had an amazing Australian Grand Prix last year when Alex Albon drove 57 of the 58 laps on the same set of hard compound tires. He became called the Tyre Whisperer. This year, the team is looking to add to their points tally as rookie Logan Sargeant gears up for his first run around Albert Park. The American had previous experience driving the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia tracks, but he has never driven in Australia. This weekend will be a major learning curve for him.
Red Bull. There isn’t really much to say. They have the fastest car on the track and probably the fastest car F1 has ever seen. The only question some people have now is which Red Bull driver will win the championship, Sergio Perez or Max Verstappen. In my opinion, that’s pretty self explanatory because Max is Red Bull’s number one driver. I don’t think a 2016 Lewis Hamilton vs. Nico Rosberg, teammate title fight will happen again this year, but you never know.
Oscar Piastri will get to experience his very first home race this weekend, and it will be extra special because he is actually from the suburbs of Melbourne. Hopefully the crazy amount of support Piastri receives this weekend will miraculously make the McLaren reliable and the papaya team can have a good result.
Daniel Ricciardo is back! The former F1 driver, now Red Bull reserve driver, will make his first appearance of the season at what is also his home race. While the Australian probably won’t drive, it will be nice to see what kind of chaos Danny Ric causes. Mick Schumacher will also be at the paddock as a Mercedes reserve driver, so maybe Daniel and Mick can hang out together when everyone else is driving.
Honorable Mentions:
I would just like to point out that this time last year, Charles Leclerc was on a three race winning streak and was the championship FAVORITE. Now, he has had one DNF, one P7 finish, THREE control electronics and energy stores, and one ten-place grid penalty. What does the universe have against this poor man?!
On that note, the Australian Grand Prix seems like it will be a blast! I feel like anything can happen in
Australia. Maybe we won’t see the same Red Bull 1-2 race again. Maybe, pigs will fly and we’ll get a shock Lando Norris maiden F1 win with two smiling Ferrari drivers and a Lewis Hamilton who isn’t whining. We’ll have to wait and see.
I will be back after the race to let you know if that dream world became reality. And don’t worry, I won’t be a full week late this time.
Happy Race Weekend!
- Divya
Where I got these
from:
https://www.mclaren.com/racing/formula-1/2023/australian-grand-prix/guide-to-australia/
https://www.ferrari.com/en-US/formula1/articles/australian-grand-prix-2023-thursday-sainz
https://www.ferrari.com/en-US/formula1/articles/australian-grand-prix-2023-thursday-leclerc
https://www.haasf1team.com/news/australian-grand-prix-preview-0
https://scuderia.alphatauri.com/en/gp-f1/australian-grand-prix/
https://scuderia.alphatauri.com/en/2023-australian-grand-prixview/
https://www.astonmartinf1.com/en-GB/races/2023-australian-gp
https://www.formula1.com/en/racing/2023/Australia/Circuit.html