Is backward time travel possible? It seems so for Scuderia Ferrari. The Italian Prancing Horses were in their own private race in the F1 season opener in Melbourne, Australia. The scarlet clad rockets piloted by team-mates Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello overwhelmed the rest of the field so thoroughly it brought back painful (to the rest of the grid) memories of the
2002 season in which Ferrari claimed 15 of the 17 race wins.
Six-time World Champion Schumacher scored the 71st victory of his brilliant career. If one needs proof of how good the German ace is, then take note of these titbits:
1) On pole for the 56th time: 9 shy of the late Ayrton Senna
2) Another victory added to his own record total
3) He lead every lap
4) Michael recorded the fastest lap, besting the previous record by 3.6s!
What more needs to be said about this man?
A Look at Qualifying
Qualifying again is a two-lap process, same as
last year but combined into back-to-back (Q1 and Q2) sessions on Saturday rather than the two-day route employed in 2003. In Q2 Barrichello turned in a stunningly quick lap to take provisional pole, besting Australian favourite Mark Webber's lap by 1.3 seconds. Rubinho's time looked strong enough to hold off the final 7 challengers. Fernando Alonso followed Barrichello on the track but the young Spaniard sensation was down by 1.2s. BAR's Jenson Button followed Alonso with a very quick lap that fell short by 0.5s. Veteran David Coulthard gave it a go but his Mercedes powered McLaren was some 2.8s off the pace due in large part to a spectacular and slightly scary off road adventure at Albert Park's final turn number 16. Last season's runner-up in the WDC Kimi Raikkonen was next to go out. The best the young Finn could manage was 1.8s off Barrichello's pace. Next out was Ralf Schumacher in his Williams BMW FW26 machine. The German gave it a good go in the unusual "tusk-nosed" Williams and he too came up short, by 1.4s.
Now we were down to just two drivers with a chance to snatch the pole from Barrichello – reigning World Champion and team-mate Michael Schumacher and the always-quick Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya. Schumi went first and his 1st and 2nd sector times were quicker than Rubens' and he is up almost a quarter second with six turns left in his run. The German ace loses a little time in the final sector but still manages to best his team-mates time by a razor thin margin of 0.074s! A stunning lap by the champ!
Will it be an all Ferrari front row or can Montoya spoil the Tifosi's party? Juan is just 0.001s off Schumi's time after the 1st sector. Fantastic. He loses a bit of time in the 2nd sector and now is 0.18s down. A slight bobble in the final turn costs him any shot at the pole as he completed his lap 0.590s off Michael's pace. Of note is that Montoya and Button recorded identical laps of 1:24.998 but Montoya is awarded 3rd place because his lap in Q1 was faster than the Englishman's.
So, the starting grid was set and this is how they lined up:
1. Michael Schumacher, Ferrari
2. Rubens Barrichello, Ferrari
3. Juan Pablo Montoya, Williams-BMW
4. Jenson Button, BAR-Honda
5. Fernando Alonso, Renault
6. Mark Webber, Jaguar-Cosworth
7. Takuma Sato, BAR-Honda
8. Ralf Schumacher, Williams-BMW
9. Jarno Trulli, Renault
10. Kimi Raikkonen, McLaren-Mercedes
11. Felipe Massa, Sauber-Petronas
12. David Coulthard, McLaren-Mercedes
13. Cristiano Da Matta, Toyota
14. Giancarlo Fisichella, Sauber-Petronas
15. Nick Heidfeld, Jordan-Cosworth
16. Giorgio Pantano, Jordan-Cosworth
17. Zsolt Baumgartner, Minardi-Cosworth
18. Gianmaria Bruni, Minardi-Cosworth
19. Christian Klien, Jaguar-Cosworth
20. Olivier Panis, Toyota
The Race
Race day ambient temperatures were some 6 degrees Centigrade cooler than it had been in qualifying. More importantly, track temperature was 15 degrees cooler and stood at 23˚C. These conditions were most favourable to the teams shod with Bridgestone tyres and perhaps this is why Ferrari was able to escape the pack with so much ease.
The two Ferraris made a clean start and entered turn one led by Schumi. Even with launch control gone for 2004, both Renaults made spectacular flying starts that have become the team's trademark over the past few seasons. Alonso made a scenic move on the slow starting Montoya, taking a stab passing the Colombian with half his car in the turf trackside. JPM attempting to defend his spot came into turn one too hot and ran wide into Albert Park's grassy blades himself. Sadly, these kinds of mistakes have become common with Montoya who has yet to realize that races cannot be won in the first turn but most certainly can be lost. The Colombian threw away any chance for victory right there, as he dropped from 3rd position all the way to 7th as Alonso, Button, Trulli and Ralf took advantage of his error. As the screaming cars exited the opening chicane, Jarno Trulli had vaulted his Renault up 4 slots, highlighting the French teams superiority on starts.
The first corner saw the usual bumping and such that accompany most Grand Prix starts but thankfully none of the serious accidents seen here before. Takuma Sato's nosecone touched the rear of Trulli, damaging both cars. Trulli's diffuser came off second best and he would comment later "the car just lacked grip." BAR would eventually replace Sato's nosecone. Further down the grid several tyres were placed off circuit (including both Saubers) as the drivers manoeuvred through the congested first chicane.
Meanwhile the two Ferraris were scampering away from the front pack at an alarming rate. Alonso was down 2.5s to Schumi after 2 laps and the champ stretched the gap to 6s after just 9 laps. It quickly became evident that Schumacher had but three challengers for the opening victory: himself, reliability and his team-mate. Barrichello pushed him hard for half the race and closed the gap to a bit less than a second on lap 18, but that was as close as the Brazilian would progress. Failing brakes after mid-point would force Rubinho to drop his charge to ensure his race finished on track rather than in a wall. Michael was able to maintain his concentration in spite of the rout in progress and the Ferrari proved bullet-proof yet again.
Once sorted out, the running order remained mostly stagnant for the remainder of the day. Montoya made several slick overtaking moves, Massa and Raikkonen swapped passes before the Finn retired on lap 10. Massa would later test his Sauber rally style plus perform a cool acrobatic spin that would make any ballerina proud. Fisichella and Heidfield engaged in an entertaining fight but duelling with Jordans was not exactly the pace Sauber had anticipated. This put to rest all the talk that the Sauber was nothing more than the 2003 Ferrari F2003 with new colours. By and large there's not that much to discuss about the race. Ferrari simply ran away from the field leaving Alonso alone in third spot as no one else could keep pace with the young Spaniard. Schumacher and Barrichello never put a wheel wrong and Alonso wrung all the performance out of his Renault, which was surprisingly competitive considering the team had scrapped their 110-degree engine for a more conservative 72-degree design V10.
Raikkonen was the first driver to retire, his tortoise-like McLaren spun off track on lap 10 with engine failure blamed on a water pump malfunction. Zsolt Baumgartner, who stood in for Ralph Firman in the Jordan at Hungary last year, was next out as his Minardi suffered electronic failure. Local hero Mark Webber's Jaguar let him down on lap 30 with gearbox problems. Rookie driver Gianmaria Bruni's Minardi was afflicted with engine misfires beginning around lap 20. The team was able to send him back out, no doubt to gain more experience and for a shot of confidence. However he finished 23 laps down and was not classified.
Clutch failure ended Jordan's Nick Heidfeld's race with 14 laps remaining. The German's 3rd pit stop was perhaps the scariest moment of the race as his failing clutch resulted in a slight overshoot of his pit box where his car accidentally hit one of his mechanics; thankfully he was uninjured. Sauber's Felipe Massa provided plenty of entertainment with a couple of off-track excursions plus a spectacular 360-degree spin on lap 19 that did no damage. Engine problems ended a fairly good performance by the Brazilian just a little time after Heidfeld's exit.
With 20 laps remaining the final eight positions would not change. Schumacher was in cruise mode in the final laps as he slowed his Ferrari's pace by as much as 6s allowing Barrichello to close within 13s as they took the chequered flag. Alonso had pretty much driven a solitary race, unable to maintain Ferrari's pace but also much quicker than the rest of the field as he took 3rd place some 35s behind Schumi. Ralf brought his Williams home in 4th, having driven a steady race and utilized superior pit strategy (coupled with pit problems for Juan) to overtake his team-mate. Jenson Button was next in the BAR and was the final driver on the lead lap as Schumacher allowed him his lap back near race end. Trulli, Coulthard, Sato and Fisichella rounded out the top ten, all one lap behind. Christian Klien made his F1 debut and claimed top rookie honours in his Jaguar with 11th position. Da Matta and Panis brought home their Toyotas two laps down while Jordan rookie Giorgio Pantano was the final classified driver, 3 laps down in 14th.
Points to ponder after Round One of the Formula One Championship
2002 déjà vu: Cooler conditions certainly favoured the Ferrari/Bridgestone combination. Both Scuderia drivers were consistently quickest all weekend though Montoya was able to surpass both in the first qualifying session. Of course we do not know what strategies, fuel or otherwise, the teams were using in Q1 and Q2. Whilst many along pit row expressed angst over the potential of another Ferrari domination
a la 2002, it is still too soon to say this is the case. We witnessed the superiority of the Michelin shod teams in the heat last year, as the heat sensitive Bridgestones became a serious liability for Ferrari. We will know with more certainty where Ferrari stands versus the rest of the grid after the sure-to-be sizzling Malaysian and Bahrain GPs.
The McLaren disaster: How else can one describe the crisis the Woking bunch find themselves mucking about? Countless millions of dollars and almost two years in development, how is it possible Ron Dennis and co produced such a beautiful car that the MP-19 is, but is pure rubbish on track? Surely there is plenty of blame to be shared . Raikkonen proved himself psychic by predicting the car incapable of completing Australia, regardless of the nonsense Dennis spouted to media. The design team plus their engineers cannot be excused from this fiasco either. During the GP, Coulthard's quickest lap was 2.2s off Schumacher's best and Raikkonen was 3.8s off (only 9 laps completed). Reliability remains a serious problem to overcome. I do not think McLaren can overcome +2s deficit this season; it just won't happen. McLaren are blessed with their drivers - a young superstar who fell just shy of the 2003 WDC and a proven veteran fighting for his F1 career. Their skills cannot turn a lemon into lemon pie; they deserve far better. Shame on McLaren! I wonder what Montoya thoughts are...
Williams-BMW: Fourth and fifth place are respectable positions though not quite as well as Sir Frank's team expected. A completely new design is expected to have teething difficulties. Given it's a new car I still wonder about their pace - was it the tyres, engine or the cool temperatures? A few numbers to show what I'm referring to:
Montoya – best lap 1.1s slower than Schumi and 0.2s off of Alonso's pace. Ralf – best lap 1.7s behind his brother and 0.8s slower than Alonso. The German's fast lap was just 0.2s quicker than the Jag of Mark Webber and both Toyotas.
Granted Montoya botched his start. Still he recovered and made several nice overtaking manoeuvres on his team-mate, Button (whom Ralf was unable to pass) and Trulli. All in all a very vibrant driving display, the best of the day even including his first corner
faux pas. The Colombian would have placed 4th if not for two botched pit stops that allowed Ralf by. I wonder why Ralf was 0.6s slower than Montoya? The younger Schumacher still suffers from his inability or unwillingness to take the fight ahead (Hungary last season was a beautiful exception). He even admitted to deferring to big brother on track this past winter. To actually utter those words seems blasphemous given they drive on separate teams. Suspecting is one thing, knowing is a whole different animal.
Renault: Very impressive in the opener. The team had developed superior launch control software in previous seasons, and this knowledge has been carried over into 2004 allowing both drivers to make blindingly quick starts, even without launch control trickery. Alonso gained two spots by the first corner while Trulli picked off four positions. Truly amazing! Kudos to the team for this and their new engine design. Alonso is a true star as each race he is proving himself to be the real deal. Trulli deserves an atta-boy for scoring two valuable points for the team. Renault has the potential to finish as high as 2nd or 3rd in the Constructors' Championship, so those two points Trulli gained will be valuable as the season progresses. Jarno will need to lend more support to his team-mate if Renault is to move up this season.
Thumbs Up to:
M Schumacher – still the best
Barrichello – excellent weekend, underrated
Alonso – living up to the hype
C Klien – 11th in his F1 debut
G Pantano – completed his F1 debut
Montoya – a true racer - needs to harness his emotions to realize his potential
Coulthard – good start, bad pit strategy
Ferrari – still the best
Renault – best of the rest, so far
BAR - on the rise and could finish ahead of McLaren. Kudos to Honda for providing engines that lasted the weekend. Hopefully they have laid to rest the "Ka-Blammo" jokes.
Jaguar – better than expected
Minardi – showing up is an achievement in itself
Thumbs Down to:
Massa – back to his wild ways
Sato – Other than Suzuka, his accomplishments seem to be his knack for collisions
McLaren – disgraceful, disastrous, dreadful – take your pick as they all fit
Toyota – 12th and 13th makes them "the" underachievers considering their budget
Sauber – disappointing opener
Max Mosley / FIA – new qualifying format stinks!
Next race: The Malaysian Grand Prix on March 21st.
Bill Keen - 23 Mar 2004
