Australian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Toro Rosso

Preview Quotes - Toro Rosso

Carlos Sainz - “I have never been to Australia, so I am really looking forward to my first visit to the country and the city of Melbourne, because everyone has told me a lot of good things about it. I have never seen the track before, which is partly a street circuit, so, as a newcomer, I think it is likely to be tough. It will also be the biggest time change I have ever experienced, so I will be heading out there nice and early to deal with any potential jet lag. Overall, I am really excited about these new experiences, particularly the fact it will be my first ever Formula 1 Grand Prix.”

Max Verstappen - “I have been to Australia before, but never to Melbourne. I only visited Sydney when I was very young and from what I remember it’s a nice place to go. I remember seeing my father race of course and now I have driven the Albert Park track quite a few times on the simulator. I think it’s a nice track and naturally, I’m looking forward to taking part in my first race in F1. At the moment, I’m not too sure how I will feel, but when the lights go on I will definitely be very excited and when they go off, then it will be just like every other race I have driven before.”

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Australian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Force India

Preview Quotes - Force India

Nico Hulkenberg - "The first race of the season is always a special occasion: a race you really look forward to for a long time. You have a new car to push to the limit in race conditions for the first time, you are often working with new people in the team and it's the first occasion to spend a race weekend with them: there is always a lot to keep you excited in addition to the regular weekend activities. As a driver, the first race is very interesting - we are as curious as anybody to see where everyone really is compared to the others. I haven't been very lucky in Melbourne in the past, but I have very good memories from last year's race. We finished sixth in our first race with the VJM07 - and considering that I had never managed to finish more than one lap in Australia until then, that was a quite welcome development! It was a very good race and I hope we can have another one this year."

Sergio Perez - "The Australian Grand Prix is one of my favourite races because it's one of those events in which everything comes together: the excitement of a new season, a great track and a fantastic city. Albert Park is a special circuit and it's great to get back to action on such a challenging track. Even though it is classified as a street circuit, it doesn't really feel like one - there are only a few corners in which you get close to the walls. Driving on it, it feels like a permanent track, although if you make a mistake you realise pretty quickly how close the walls really are!

There are many difficult corners and it is not easy to get a perfect lap here: turn one, in particular, is very technical and difficult also because you can't really see the apex. It is a great feeling to get that corner right. In terms of set-up, you are mostly looking for front end grip and it is not easy to find the right balance for the car. Melbourne is the place where I had my first Formula One race. That's a great memory that will stay with me forever. It's my best memory from Melbourne so far, but I hope to refresh it with some new memories soon!"

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Australian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Williams

Preview Quotes - Williams

Valtteri Bottas - "A new season and the first time we see where everyone is competitively. The weekend will be interesting but also important as we have to be able to have a strong start and make sure we gain the most from the weekend, especially as other teams improve. You never know how other teams will progress throughout the season, so points here are key. I like Melbourne, the first race is really when the gloves come off so qualifying will be an exciting session."

Felipe Massa - "Being the first race, Australia is important and normally holds a few surprises. All of the hard work over the winter gets its first rewards here, but it can also show a sign of how much work is still to be done. It's important to start well and give yourself potentially a head start over your competitors. Australia is a tough track though and the rear stability is important. I also hope that I personally have a better start to the season than last year!"

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Australian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Lotus

Preview Quotes - Lotus

Romain Grosjean - “Albert Park is still one of my favourite Grand Prix circuits, so it will be good to get there and get the season started and there’s always a great atmosphere. It’s a fantastic track and the changing scenery as you drive through the park is incredible. Of course it’s a great country and I always enjoy visiting Australia, although as someone who loves their sleep, I still haven’t found the perfect strategy to counter jet-lag!

We know it can be a tricky circuit; it’s not a permanent track so the surface and its layout gives us plenty to think about. We’re still quite early in our understanding of the E23 and how it works so we’ll be kept busy finding the correct set-up and getting everything working as we want it to. The weather can make things pretty difficult too - three years ago we had lots of rain and even had to finish qualifying on Sunday morning! Hopefully the weather will be good this year! You can say that everyone will be in the same position of not knowing what to expect, and with all the car changes I imagine there will be a few surprises! For us the weekend will be maximising the time on track, aiming to finish the race and getting the best result possible.”

Pastor Maldonado - “I’m very excited and I can’t wait to start racing again. We have a new car, it’s a new season, I’m fitter than I’ve ever been before, so we’re all eager to get back to action. I’m happy with what we’ve learnt this winter, and it’s a completely different situation from last year. We’re much stronger and better prepared for 2015. We’ve done more than 4,500km in testing so it’s interesting what we’ve learnt and we’ll be able to put everything into practice in Australia and with the development of the car. My feeling is this car is much better that last year’s car and not just in one area but with every aspect of the car. Obviously, it’s been good to work with the Mercedes power unit, but that’s just one part as the whole package is very promising and it looks to have good potential for the rest of the year.”

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Australian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Red Bull

Preview Quotes - Red Bull

Daniel Ricciardo - “I love going home and the fresh air really gives me that home feeling. I spend so much time now away from Australia that anywhere in Oz feels like home really. It’s the cars, the accent, the food and the weather. The whole (Melbourne) vibe and atmosphere is just amazing. It’s busy and there is always something going on. The track is fun. I’ve always liked street circuits. I think it’s a great and fast flowing circuit. Testing has been relatively good for us. We had a few reliability issues but we racked up a lot of miles and learned a lot. I still feel that we have a bit more to go. But there is no better place to do this than going racing. I’m ready to go.”

Daniil Kvyat - “There is always something special about the race in Australia. It’s my second race in Melbourne and I took a lot of great memories from the race last year. It’s a beautiful place. Good weather, good food and great atmosphere. It’s an interesting flowing track. It’s challenging and there is always something special about it. Last year was my first Formula One race and it all felt like a dream, because I didn’t know what to expect. It’s a memory that will never go away. I finished my first race in the points and became youngest-ever scorer, so it was very special for me. We did our best in the testing. I wouldn’t say it was the smoothest, but it was productive. Compared to last year we were definitely on another level. I’m sure that there will be very tight competition in Australia. We’ll do our best.”

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Australian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - McLaren

Preview Quotes - McLaren


Jenson Button - “I’m so excited to be back in Melbourne. After the ups and downs of 2014, I feel that the challenge of 2015 is a completely new chapter in my career and I’m totally up for it. I also love Melbourne - it’s a fantastic city with great people and the atmosphere is always buzzing - Albert Park is the perfect place for the season-opener. While we know the city and the circuit well, what is more of an unknown is how we will fare in the MP4-30. McLaren-Honda has been working incredibly hard over the winter, and although we would of course have liked to cover more miles in Jerez and Barcelona, I can definitely see a difference in the car from the first day to the last. The team’s commitment to development and improvement, both in Woking and in Japan, is astonishing, and despite some tricky days in testing, we are seeing definitive progress. The car is a solid base which gives me optimism that we will get there, we just need patience.

Melbourne is always a fascinating spectacle: nobody quite knows where they’ll be in comparison to their rivals, and even though the other teams are now in the second year of the turbo era, all of the development from last year has been done very much behind the scenes, so I don’t think anyone has quite shown their full hand yet. The race at Albert Park will be a huge learning curve for us, but I’ll be working flat-out with my engineers to get the car set up as best we can, and together, we’ll fight right until the last moment to get the most out of the weekend. Fernando not being able to race is a real shame and I hope he makes a speedy recovery so that he can get behind the wheel again very soon. It’s great to see Kevin back in the car though and I’ll know he’ll do a great job in Fernando’s absence, so I wish him well this weekend.”

Kevin Magnussen - "I’m really pleased to be behind the wheel with McLaren-Honda at Melbourne again. Of course, the reason I am here is an unusual one, but my job is to do the best job I can for the team while Fernando is out of the cockpit, and that's what I'll do. To be back in Melbourne is a fantastic feeling, especially as those memories of my podium here last year are incredibly special and something I’ll never forget. I loved racing on this circuit last year and I’m really looking forward to getting back out on track in Friday practice to continue the development of our car here. Although we had some challenges in Barcelona, overall the MP4-30 felt very positive and certainly different from last year’s car, in a good way. 

Of course, we aren’t expecting to win here, but my focus is on setting up the car for race conditions and pushing our progress forward. I’ll be working hard with my engineers to give them as much valuable feedback as possible so that they can keep developing the car and improving our performance and reliability.  Although I didn’t expect to be sitting in the cockpit in Australia, I’ve spent the winter preparing as I would normally for a race season, so I feel fit and ready for the task ahead of me and to do the best I can for the team. It’s a fantastic opportunity for me to get more mileage under my belt in the MP4-30, and this will in turn benefit the team over the coming months as I work with the team back in Woking. The racing is sure to be unpredictable here at the start of the new season, and it’ll be really interesting to find out where we compare to the rest of the grid, but I’m definitely up for the challenge.”

Fernando Alonso - “Of course, I’m very disappointed not to be joining Jenson in Melbourne in the McLaren-Honda garage, but I understand the recommendations of the doctors and I’m already back in training and preparing for my first race in the MP4-30. I would like to thank everybody for their kind wishes and support and I’ll be giving everything to be back in the cockpit for Malaysia. I wish Kevin all the best for this weekend in Australia, and I know the car is in his safe hands! Even though we faced a lot of challenges in the tests, I am very encouraged by the feeling I got from the car, and I’m looking forward to going through all of the data from this weekend with the team to continue our push for development and improve our performance.” 

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Article Posted By: Amy Hawk
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Australian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Mercedes

Preview Quotes - Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton - “At this point in the year you don't really know what to feel as a driver. You're impatient to get back to racing but, at the same time, you never know what a new season will bring. Testing gives you a basic idea of whether the car feels good or not but, beyond that, it's anyone's game to win. The team have been working incredibly hard through the winter and it was great to see everyone in the factory before I left for Melbourne. I'm so thankful for everything they do and I want to show that in the best way I can out on track. We had a great season last year as a team and, of course, we'd all love to repeat that. But the others won't stop chasing us. I'm sure the competition will be close and we should get exciting racing with plenty of battling for position - which is great because that's what I love doing and that's what the fans love watching. There are many good drivers out there and all of them want to win. You just have to want it more than they do. I feel fresh, I feel fit, I feel relaxed, I feel positive... I feel ready. I think as a driver you get stronger with every season, so I plan to be better than last year.” 

Nico Rosberg - “2014 was a really incredible season for the team and I know everyone is pushing harder than ever to do it all again. Seeing everyone at the factory is a big motivation for me. This will be my sixth year with the team and we're getting stronger with every season. It's great to have a group of people working alongside you who are as passionate and driven as you are. It's up to us drivers to repay them for all their efforts and I'm determined to do them proud. We had a good winter but it's never straightforward. You always have challenges to overcome and there's nothing for certain, so we have to keep pushing. Personally, I have focused on pushing myself even harder for the rematch with Lewis. In the end, it comes down to who can put the best season together overall and I have to make sure it's the other way around this time. Having said that, my team mate is just one of many strong competitors who I have to beat if I want to be World Champion, so I'm just focused on being the absolute best I can be. I now know the feeling of winning races and I intend to do a lot more of that - but I also know the feeling of not winning in the end and I don't intend to repeat that experience. It's a huge motivation for me and gives me even more determination for 2015.”

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Article posted by: Amy Hawk
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Australian GP: Circuit Preview

(Image belongs to: www.allf1.info - All rights go to the owner)

It's time to take a look at the first circuit of the year. The first race of the year is always thrilling. New drivers, new cars and new rules always makes for an interesting season opener.

"Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit" is located in Albert Part, Melbourne, Australia and is currently the host of the Season-Opener for Formula 1 Racing. The circuit first opened November 20th 1953.

It runs Clockwise and is 3.295 miles in length, with a capacity of 80,000. There are 16 turns and the current lap total for the race on this circuit is 57.

In 2014, Lewis Hamilton started on Pole but it was Nico Rosberg who won the first race of the year while Ricciardo came second and Magnussen third. However, Ricciardo was later disqualified from the race, promoting Magnussen to second and Jenson Button to third.

Retirements inclded: Romain Grosjean (Power Unit), Pastor Maldonado (Power Unit), Marcus Ericsson (Oil Pressure), Sebastian Vettel (Engine Failure), Lewis Hamilton (Engine Failure), Felipe Massa (Collision), and Kamui Kobayashi (Collision)

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

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Australian GP: Schedule

The first race of the season is getting closer and closer and the teams & drivers are packing up and heading for Melbourne, Australia. Here's the track schedule for race week!

SCHEDULE: (All times standard for Melbourne)

March 12th / Thursday

09:00 - 10:20 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk
14:00 - 14:30 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk
15:00 - Drivers Press Conference (Located in the Press Room)

March 13th / Friday

12:30 - 14:00 - Free Practice #1
11:30 - 12:10 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk
16:30 - 18:00 - Free Practice #2
18:30 - 19:30 - Principals Press Conference (Located in the Press Room)

March 14th / Saturday

14:00 - 15:00 - Free Practice #3
11:05 - 12:00 - Team Pit-Stop Practice
11:30 - 12:00 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk
17:00 - 18:00 - Qualifying 
16:05 - 16:40 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk

March 15th / Sunday

11:10 - 11:40 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk
13:30 - 14:15 - Paddock Club Pit-Lane Walk
14:25 - Drivers Photograph (On Starting Grid)
14:30 - 14:40 - Drivers Track Parade
14:45 - 15:15 - Starting Grid Presentation
15:50 - 15:52 - National Anthem
16:00 - Race

(Times are subject to change)
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Article Written By: Amy Hawk
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Pre-Season Test #3 - Barcelona Day 4 - Times & Re-Cap

F1 testing is finally over and the last day was crucial for the teams to make sure they have everything in order before the Season-Starter: Australia.

Minor problems for Red Bull, including an issue that made the car stop in the pit-lane early on in the morning. However, Ricciardo still had plenty of run time and racked up a total of 70 laps.

McLaren faced more delays due to a sensor issue that required the team to remove the engine. Due to this, Button ended the day with only 30 laps.

Sergio Perez had his first taste of the VJM08 and did a total of 127 laps. The team is feeling very positive about the car but expects minor set-backs in the first few races of the season.

Lotus had to end the day early due to a crash for Maldonado caused by brake failure. While there were no injuries, it was not a good way to end testing.

Here are the times from the final day:

1. Valtteri Bottas - 1:23.063 / Williams-Mercedes

2. Sebastian Vettel - 1:23.469 / Ferrari-Ferrari

3. Felipe Nasr - 1:24.023 / Sauber-Ferrari

4. Max Verstappen - 1:24.638 / Toro Rosso-Renault

5. Daniel Ricciardo - 1:24.638 / Red Bull-Renault

6. Sergio Perez - 1:25.113 / Force India-Mercedes

7. Nico Rosberg - 1:25.186 / Mercedes-Mercedes

8. Jenson Button - 1:25.327 / McLaren-Honda

9. Pastor Maldonado - 1:28.272 / Lotus-Mercedes

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

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