Winter weary F1 fans all over the world have been waiting for what seems like an eternity for the season to start. 2019 marks the introduction of new aerodynamics rules with the aim of improving the ability of cars to follow one another, a point being awarded for fastest race lap, and a new tire naming scheme from Pirelli. 2019 also ushers in an exciting and high-profile partnership between Red Bull Racing and Honda. Other changes include Sauber officially becoming Alfa Romeo, Force India becoming Racing Point, and Haas picking up a new title sponsor in Rich Energy. The wait is almost over. The 2019 Formula 1 season begins this weekend in Melbourne!
For both Red Bull teams optimism abounds as Honda seems to have made genuine progress over the winter and delivered both Toro Rosso and Red Bull overwhelmingly positive performances in pre-season testing. With the midfield battle being tighter than ever, look for Toro Rosso to be knocking on the door of a points finish. Red Bull are a bit more confident having accelerated a car update scheduled for China to be delivered this weekend in a bid to maximize their potential. Still, for a first-time outing we should expect high points paying positions with a podium being a possibility.
Elsewhere on the grid, Mercedes and Ferrari took opposite approaches to pre-season testing with the former remaining low key and the latter showing the world a preview of what its 2019 contender is capable of. This time it looks like Ferrari’s performance advantage is genuine as Mercedes is racing a revised engine architecture for the first time. The next battle we should expect to see is between Haas and Renault with the former perhaps having a slight advantage owed to its Ferrari power unit. From there we can expect a hard battle between McLaren and Alfa Romeo. If it doesn’t happen in Melbourne, we should expect Racing Point to quickly find their footing and improve over what we saw in pre-season testing. Unfortunately for Williams, they look to be relegated to the back of the grid, perhaps for the whole of 2019.
US TV SCHEDULE:
Practice 1 – Thursday, March 14, 8:55 PM – ESPN3
Practice 2 – Friday, March 15, 12:55 AM –
ESPNEWS
Practice 3 – Friday, March 15, 10:55 PM –
ESPNEWS
Qualifying – Saturday, March 16, 1:55 AM – ESPN2
On The Grid – Sunday, March 17, 12:30 AM –
ESPN
Race – Sunday, March 17, 1:00 AM –
ESPN
CIRCUIT
INFO:
Lap data
Lap length: 5.303km (3.295 miles)
Race laps: 58
Race distance: 307.574km (191.118 miles)
Pole position: Left-hand side of the track
Lap record*: 1’24.125 (226.934 kph) by Michael Schumacher, 2004
Maximum speed: 312kph (193.868 mph)
DRS
zone/s (race): First and second straight
Distance from grid to turn one: 380m
Car performance
Full throttle: 71%
Longest flat-out section: 843m
Downforce level: High
Gear changes per lap: 54
Fuel use per lap: 2.5kg
Time penalty per lap of fuel: 0.1s
Strategy
Quickest complete pit stop: 2012 21.91s by Ferrari
2019 tyres: C4, C3, C2 (2018: Ultrasoft, Supersoft, Soft)
2018 RESULTS:
Podium
1. Sebastian Vettel – Ferrari
2. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
3. Kimi Raikonnen – Ferrari
Race laps: 58
Pole sitter: Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes – 1:21.164
Fast race lap: Daniel Ricciardo – Red Bull – 1:25.945
*Fastest lap set during a Grand Prix
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