F1 Melbourne Overview

Matt De Angelis

Matt De Angelis Preview

Testing is complete and the wait is just about over. This weekend, the new Formula One season finally kicks off in Melbourne with the 2015 Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix.

A surprising crescendo to the 2014 season was the defection of Sebastian Vettel from Red Bull to Ferrari. The spin on the situation, from Vettel himself, is that it was a life-long dream to race for Scuderia Ferrari and follow in Schumi's footsteps. We, as fans, can speculate that he was being becoming ever frustrated with the absence of a competitive car and the young Russian rookie, Daniil Kvyat, got the nod as his replacement. Unofficially, Alonso looking for a seat, the door was shut at RBR and cemented confidence in their penchant for young drivers. Well placed confidence, with the breakaway success of Daniel Ricciardo and his stellar season in a second row car.

On paper, it's hard to go past Ricciardo as the stand out performer for this team, but kick the training wheels off and Kvyat will prove a wildcard amongst this grid.

Ricciardo quote

"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."

The reigning champions, Mercedes, will hold onto their 2014 line-up with a death grip and for good reason. Argue the point of Lewis versus Nico, but a few game changers made last season very opportunistic for both drivers and it could have easily unfolded in a very different way. Nico Rosberg signed a `multi-year' contract extension in May, whilst Lewis Hamilton's current deal takes him to the end of 2016. Preseason testing has seen the Mercs top the table for pace on most occasions, however, they aren't putting in the volume of some of the other teams.

On surface, there's a razor thin difference between the skills of these two drivers; Nico's strength in qualifying, versus Lewis' race pace. Expect Nico to bare his fangs this season. Gracious in defeat last year, Nico is hungrier than ever and will most likely adopt a Senna-eqsue level of ambition this season. This will be a test to see if Mercedes can iron out reliability issues which plagued both drivers, and in many ways, decided last season's champion.

Marking the end of the Alonso era at Ferrari, in Abu Dhabi the team finally confirmed what we all saw coming; Vettel will partner Kimi. He knows what he's doing, but Kimi is yet to partner with a driver of the likes of Seb. Ego has never really played a role in Kimi's actions over the last year, mostly frustration, but it's going to be difficult to predict outcomes in this radically redeveloped car. The SF15-T will be the difference between the two drivers. Seb and Kimi shared moments of brilliance in 2014 in under-performing cars and the chassis is garnering praise from all involved in testing so far. This is one of the more interesting developments in 2015.

Crash prone, Pastor Maldonado cops a lot of criticism for his seat, but his raw pace and PDVSA backing secured his spot for 2015. Romain Grosjean will partner him after the Frenchman was finally confirmed at the eleventh hour (by F1 standards). The success of both drivers will hang on the arrival of Mercedes power to push them up the grid. Lotus need not be a mid-tier team this year. It It's been proven time and time again, that in a more competitive field, Grosjean has showed he can fend off the big boys while Pastor needs to harness something, anything, to stay in the good graces of the legions of disenchanted "pay to play" fans and try his best not to catch on fire again.

Alonso has returned to McLaren! Common knowledge if you're the King or Duke or Prince of Spain, but Jenson Button had a nervous wait to decide his fate. K.Mag was a contender to keep his race seat at the team, but is resigned to testing duties. This is an experienced line up but with Fernando out of commission after his spill in testing, it'll add some intrigue to the Melbourne opener. McLaren Honda will be the dark horses this season & can hope to tussle for 2nd row with Red Bull Racing & Williams.

Button came into his own towards the end of last season and was denied the satisfaction of a podium at Albert Park in the opener. We will see fire from him, particularly after the struggle to retain his spot. We await the return of Alonso for a more thorough comparison.

Force India has confirmed Nico Hulkenberg for 2015 after doors further up the grid were shut. The consistency in a mid-grid car was impressive. This is the first time that The Hulk has kept his seat at the same team for two consecutive seasons. Sergio Perez will join him once again after signing a `multi-year' contract. There is not a great deal that separates these two in the field, expect consistent top 10 qualifying.

Hulkenburg Quote

"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!"

Sauber boast an all-new line-up for 2015. This is not a reflection on the team's finances, it's just an absolute necessity to shake things up behind the wheel. Marcus Ericsson brings money to the team after the fall of Caterham. Nasr has taken part in Friday practice sessions for Williams this year, as well as securing a third-place finish in the GP2 championship, and comes to Sauber with substantial backing from Banco do Brasil. It will be interesting to see the two drivers go up against each other, with Nasr coming to the team off the back of four wins in GP2 and Ericsson's form riding an upward trajectory in his last few runs for Caterham.

Toro Rosso raised eyebrows earlier this year when it elevated Max Verstappen to its team for 2015. The Dutch prodigy due to smash all sorts of records when he lines up on the Melbourne grid at only age 17. At the time he looked likely to partner Kvyat, but now that the Russian is moving up the pit lane to Red Bull. Jean-Eric Vergne was hopeful he could keep his seat but was ditched despite a strong finish to the 2014 season. Replacing him will be Formula Renault 3.5 champion Carlos Sainz Jr, son of the rally legend who shares his name, as Toro Rosso opts for a bold all-rookie line-up which will start the first race with a combined age of just 37 years old.

Williams retains their line up and cannot be anything less than pleased with the pairing, confirming them all the way back in Monza. Bottas is a future champion, no doubt about it and Massa has proved to be a mentor and role model for him. Leading by example with fine finishes late last season.

Massa Quote

"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!"

Closing out on the subject or Marussia/Manor, They've made it to Melbourne, that's already a victory for 2015!

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2015 Australian Formula 1 GP competition

We can't be more excited to see local hero, Daniel Ricciardo, get his chance this year with a redeveloped car and such a strong 2014 season! To give you a chance to show your support, we are giving away a Red Bull F1 prize pack!

Just follow the link to enter!