Sunday, April 02, 2006
# posted by Rich @ 2:47 AM
Australia: pre-race
Jenson Button will be looking to convert his pole position into race glory today, but he has some stiff competition. Starting just behind him are the two Renaults, who have been the class fo the field so far this year. Just behind them are the two McLarens, who have shown a lot of outright pace, but have yet to capitalise on their speed (partly due to bad luck). However, if they can stay out of first lap trouble, then they stand a good chance of challenging for a victory.
Further down the grid, there are some notables to watch out for, especially Michael Schumacher, who was caught out by the red flags and the rain in qualifying, and Felipe Massa, who has demonstrated an ability to charge from the back. He will need to make use of it again, because he will be starting from 15th place.
Starting just ahead of him in 14th place is really the man to watch in my opinion - Nico Rosberg. Rosberg was very unlucky in qualifying, getting caught out by the red flag in Q2, and then not being able to find any clear track. I expect to see a charge through the field from him - remember, he was free to choose his fuel load because he didn't compete in Q3, and therefore he and Williams have the advantage of being able to choose their tactics.
So, what to watch out for in the race. Well, I am still going to pick Alonso for the win, because he is poised in position and he was damn fast here last year. I expect exactly the same thing to happen at the start as happened in Montreal last year - Button to get swamped by the two Reanults into the first corner, and I think it will be Alonso who will take the lead. I think that Button, Fisichella, Montoya, and Raikkonen will be challengin each other for the podium. I expect to see Schumacher, Massa, and Rosberg making charges through the field, with the possibilty of points from each of them. Webber will be keen to impress on home soil, and I definitely think a top 5 finish is on the cards for him. Oh, and one more driver to watch for - Barrichello. He was fast he last year, but he has had a torrid time of it so far this year, and I don't anticipate him being able to get much higher than 8th place. One final person to look out for is Villeneuve - having had an engine change penalty, he will be starting down in 19th, but has been quick this weekend. However, he did make a big tactical blunder in my opinion, by geting in to Q3, and therefore had his starting fuel locked in. He would have been better off screwing qualifying and then would have been able to choose his starting fuel load. He would have started 3 places lower on the grid (big deal).
One other thing to watch out for - I have a feeling that there are going to be a lot of spins and off-track excursions during the race, if the practice and qualifying sesions are anything to go by. I have a feeling that some fo the top runners might be involved in some of this action, and will result in some lower than normal finishing positions.
Strategy, as always, will play an important partin the race. 1-stoppers, who might include Schumacher, Massa, Rosberg, and the McLarens, should be expected to stop around laps 27-31; 2-stoppers, who should make up most of the field should stop around laps 17-21 and laps 36-40; 3-stopper, who might include Button, will be in laps 13-16, laps 27-30, and laps 42-44.
My predicitions: Alonso, Button, Raikkonen, Fisichella, Webber, Montoya, Rosberg, Ralf Schumacher
Further down the grid, there are some notables to watch out for, especially Michael Schumacher, who was caught out by the red flags and the rain in qualifying, and Felipe Massa, who has demonstrated an ability to charge from the back. He will need to make use of it again, because he will be starting from 15th place.
Starting just ahead of him in 14th place is really the man to watch in my opinion - Nico Rosberg. Rosberg was very unlucky in qualifying, getting caught out by the red flag in Q2, and then not being able to find any clear track. I expect to see a charge through the field from him - remember, he was free to choose his fuel load because he didn't compete in Q3, and therefore he and Williams have the advantage of being able to choose their tactics.
So, what to watch out for in the race. Well, I am still going to pick Alonso for the win, because he is poised in position and he was damn fast here last year. I expect exactly the same thing to happen at the start as happened in Montreal last year - Button to get swamped by the two Reanults into the first corner, and I think it will be Alonso who will take the lead. I think that Button, Fisichella, Montoya, and Raikkonen will be challengin each other for the podium. I expect to see Schumacher, Massa, and Rosberg making charges through the field, with the possibilty of points from each of them. Webber will be keen to impress on home soil, and I definitely think a top 5 finish is on the cards for him. Oh, and one more driver to watch for - Barrichello. He was fast he last year, but he has had a torrid time of it so far this year, and I don't anticipate him being able to get much higher than 8th place. One final person to look out for is Villeneuve - having had an engine change penalty, he will be starting down in 19th, but has been quick this weekend. However, he did make a big tactical blunder in my opinion, by geting in to Q3, and therefore had his starting fuel locked in. He would have been better off screwing qualifying and then would have been able to choose his starting fuel load. He would have started 3 places lower on the grid (big deal).
One other thing to watch out for - I have a feeling that there are going to be a lot of spins and off-track excursions during the race, if the practice and qualifying sesions are anything to go by. I have a feeling that some fo the top runners might be involved in some of this action, and will result in some lower than normal finishing positions.
Strategy, as always, will play an important partin the race. 1-stoppers, who might include Schumacher, Massa, Rosberg, and the McLarens, should be expected to stop around laps 27-31; 2-stoppers, who should make up most of the field should stop around laps 17-21 and laps 36-40; 3-stopper, who might include Button, will be in laps 13-16, laps 27-30, and laps 42-44.
My predicitions: Alonso, Button, Raikkonen, Fisichella, Webber, Montoya, Rosberg, Ralf Schumacher
Labels: Australia, Formula 1, Grand Prix
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