Albert Park, 25 March


Before coming to Melbourne, we already knew that this year’s Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro car was reliable, thanks to an impressive mileage accumulated over the fifteen days of testing in Spain. So, no surprise then that Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa racked up over one hundred laps between them in today’s two free practice sessions. However, any questions relating to the pecking order among the twelve teams remain unanswered on a day best described as confusing, not least because of cool conditions and the occasional shower of light rain. Add in the fact that this semi-permanent track is also a bit green and dirty on the first day and clearly, the engineers will have a tough task analysing all the data from today, in order to prepare for the rest of the weekend.


Despite the fact that the media seemed determined to write off the McLaren team in terms of competitiveness, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton proved them wrong in no uncertain terms, setting the fastest two times of the day, with the Scuderia’s Fernando Alonso third. Red Bull Racing, who topped the morning time sheet, were fourth and fifth this evening, with reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel ahead of team-mate Mark Webber. In sixth place was Michael Schumacher for Mercedes, with Felipe Massa in the other Prancing Horse car seventh. Of the five new drivers making their F1 debut, the best of the bunch was Sergio Perez: the Mexican set the eighth quickest time for Sauber.

Dryer and warmer conditions are forecast for tomorrow, so it is possible that the first qualifying session of the season might start to deliver some of the elusive answers regarding the relative strengths of the teams. At the moment it’s too close to call and as Fernando pointed out, ensuring that every aspect of the team’s work is carried out perfectly will be the key to having a good day tomorrow.