Following the season opener in Australia, Formula 1 heads straight into the Chinese GP. This race weekend will host the first sprint race of the year, giving the teams an extra layer to consider. And after a rain-soaked Australia GP, some will come into this race buoyed with confidence, while others hope to turn their fortunes around.
Following the dramatic curtain raiser, many teams found out if their pre-season testing data was accurate or if work was needed. Melbourne produced many talking points, so we take a look at who shone and who floundered.
Which teams are in good stead for Chinese GP?
McLaren dominated the Australian GP. They qualified well by locking out the front row and were pulling comfortably away from Max Verstappen. The pace is in the car like pre-season testing showed and if it wasn’t for the rain, they would easily have secured a one-two finish. They also performed well in China last season before their game-changing upgrades were introduced. They will be confident of another dominant weekend.
Mercedes performed better than expected. George Russell was always solid in his Silver Arrow, qualifying in P4 and finishing on the podium after Piastri’s spin. The Merc showed good pace but was unable to keep up with Red Bull or McLaren. Kimi Antonelli had a poor Saturday after being knocked out in Q1. However, he turned his fortunes around after a rain masterclass by coming home for P4.
James Vowles Encouraged by Williams’ Performance in Australian GP
Williams also looked strong. They got both cars into the top ten in qualifying and Alex Albon finished in P5. Carlos Sainz retired on the opening lap which was a blip but the car has good pace. Williams looks to be the team to beat in the midfield battle.
Racing Bulls will come into the Chinese GP weekend full of optimism. Their car has pace, as shown by Yuki Tsunoda qualifying in P5. He would have scored a good haul of points if it wasn’t for the team leaving him on slick tyres when the rain hit towards the end of the race. But the pace they showed, they will be challenging Williams next time out.
Who struggled at the Australin GP?
Ferrari had a weekend to forget. In the dry, the Scuderia could only manage to lock out the fourth row. In the rain, it didn’t get much better. Once the last rain shower hit, Ferrari took a gamble to stay out on dry tyres. This didn’t work out as the rain was too heavy and had to pit under the safety car. This dropped them to the lower fringes of the points where they couldn’t recover.
Lewis Hamilton Frustrated After Ferrari Debut at Australian GP
Alpine also had a disappointing weekend. They were meant to challenge Williams for the ‘best of the rest’ crown. However, they were off the pace. Pierre Gasly did make it into Q3 but was nearly a quarter of a second behind Albon. In the race, Williams was faster and after both drivers made mistakes, the French team failed to score.
The team with the biggest problems heading to China were Haas. The car had no pace as Esteban Ocon was six-tenths off getting out of Q1. In the race, the pace was no better. To make matters worse, Oliver Bearman crashed twice in practice, meaning the team had to change the power unit and gearbox.
Rookies need to improve before the Chinese GP
Conditions were tough on race day but the whole weekend saw some of F1’s new boys struggle. Oliver Bearman had a weekend to forget. He crashed in FP1 meaning the team had to fix the car during FP2. On Saturday morning, he crashed again. This led to him missing qualifiyng with a broken gearbox. It didn’t get better in the rainy conditions as Bearman spun in the race as the Brit finished last and seven seconds off his teammate.
Liam Lawson has the pressure to perform in his Red Bull. There will be comparisons between him and Yuki Tsunoda all season and it didn’t start well for the Kiwi. Lawson had a scruffy qualifying session as he exited at the first stage. His runs were error-strewn and he looked like he was driving with pressure. In the race, he span out to make his Red Bull debut one to forget.
Red Bull’s Decision in Question as Yuki Tsunoda Qualifies P5, Liam Lawson P18 in Australia
Jack Doohan and Isack Hadjar had a good Saturday and qualified well. They were both beaten by their experienced teammate but put up a good showing. However, come race day, their weekends went downhill. Doohan crashed his Alpine into the wall on the first lap ending his race prematurely. However, Hadjar didn’t get to start the race, as he span out at turn 2 on the formation lap.
For all the rookies, the Australian GP was a steep learning curve. It wasn’t great conditions to be thrown into for the season opener, especially when the drivers are still getting to know the cars. With dry conditions expected in Shanghai, there is now little margin for error.
