Australian GP - Confirmation
Melbourne, 28th March 2009
Yesterday's headline on our daily round-up was "new order" and the result of the first qualifying session of the season definitely confirmed that Friday's results did not just stop with the sun setting at the end of the second practice session.
Felipe Massa will start the Australian Grand Prix from the inside of the fourth row of the grid in seventh place, with Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro team-mate Kimi Raikkonen right behind him in ninth spot. If that sounds rather unsatisfactory, then consider that the Prancing Horse's usual rivals for the past few years, the McLaren-Mercedes team, did even worse, with Heikki Kovalainen fourteenth and reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton fifteenth. Kimi's preparation for the first qualifying of the year took a knock, when he was stranded out on track in today's free practice, with an hydraulic problem.
The reason for this change in fortune for the two teams that have dominated the sport for so long is that, at the moment, there is no disputing that one car is head and shoulders above the others in performance terms, while others are also showing much better than in past years. Brawn Mercedes, the team that almost did not exist this year after Honda pulled out of the sport, has had a dream start to 2009, monopolising the front row of the grid. In the first session, the two white cars went out with virtually no advertising on their bodywork. Then, just before qualifying, the entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson arrived in the paddock and as the session began, the cars were sporting Virgin stickers. By the end of the session, Jenson Button had taken the fourth pole position of his career, the last one coming at this same track in 2006, while former Ferrari driver, Rubens Barrichello, took second place. The surprises continued as the second row saw the Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel in third, on his race debut for the English team, with Robert Kubica fourth for BMW. Row three features the Williams-Toyota of Nico Rosberg and the Toyota of Timo Glock completing the top six.
Tomorrow, the race starts at five in the afternoon, another novelty in a season that seems set to present several new elements. The Australian Grand Prix, since it moved to being the first of the season, has a reputation for providing surprises and incidents, partly because it is the first event and partly because of the nature of the circuit. The Ferrari duo will have 58 laps to try and make the best of the situation. The important thing will be to finish and finish in the points, because even if a win looks a difficult target tomorrow, consistency throughout the year will be the key that unlocks the 2009 championship titles.
Yesterday's headline on our daily round-up was "new order" and the result of the first qualifying session of the season definitely confirmed that Friday's results did not just stop with the sun setting at the end of the second practice session.
Felipe Massa will start the Australian Grand Prix from the inside of the fourth row of the grid in seventh place, with Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro team-mate Kimi Raikkonen right behind him in ninth spot. If that sounds rather unsatisfactory, then consider that the Prancing Horse's usual rivals for the past few years, the McLaren-Mercedes team, did even worse, with Heikki Kovalainen fourteenth and reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton fifteenth. Kimi's preparation for the first qualifying of the year took a knock, when he was stranded out on track in today's free practice, with an hydraulic problem.
The reason for this change in fortune for the two teams that have dominated the sport for so long is that, at the moment, there is no disputing that one car is head and shoulders above the others in performance terms, while others are also showing much better than in past years. Brawn Mercedes, the team that almost did not exist this year after Honda pulled out of the sport, has had a dream start to 2009, monopolising the front row of the grid. In the first session, the two white cars went out with virtually no advertising on their bodywork. Then, just before qualifying, the entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson arrived in the paddock and as the session began, the cars were sporting Virgin stickers. By the end of the session, Jenson Button had taken the fourth pole position of his career, the last one coming at this same track in 2006, while former Ferrari driver, Rubens Barrichello, took second place. The surprises continued as the second row saw the Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel in third, on his race debut for the English team, with Robert Kubica fourth for BMW. Row three features the Williams-Toyota of Nico Rosberg and the Toyota of Timo Glock completing the top six.
Tomorrow, the race starts at five in the afternoon, another novelty in a season that seems set to present several new elements. The Australian Grand Prix, since it moved to being the first of the season, has a reputation for providing surprises and incidents, partly because it is the first event and partly because of the nature of the circuit. The Ferrari duo will have 58 laps to try and make the best of the situation. The important thing will be to finish and finish in the points, because even if a win looks a difficult target tomorrow, consistency throughout the year will be the key that unlocks the 2009 championship titles.
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