Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix will not win any awards for being the sport’s best race, yet it was still enjoyable fare that gave hope for the future.
The running order at the end of Lap 1 for the top six in Melbourne was Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Valtteri Bottas, Kimi Raikkonen, Max Verstappen and Felipe Massa. Fifty Six laps later when the chequered flag fell at the end of Lap 57 the order was Vettel, Hamilton, Bottas, Raikkonen, Verstappen and Massa. Only one position changed hands in the top six all afternoon – granted it was for the lead – and that did not happen on track, making for a processional afternoon.
But to write off the race at Albert Park would be unfair. The duel between the Mercedes-GP of Hamilton and Vettel’s Ferrari was fascinating and sets up for the first time in almost a decade potentially a genuine title fight between two rival teams.
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Read more
■ In pictures: Sebastian Vettel wins Australian GP in Melbourne
■ Comment: Vettel right to be positive after qualifying
■ Podcast: Ferrari to rival Mercedes, expect more thrills from Verstappen
■ Predictions: Sebastian Vettel to win world title
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The past three seasons have been a private party for Mercedes, who have dominated the sport on an almost unprecedented level. During that time they have won 51 of those 59 races, claiming 57 pole positions, and sweeping up the drivers’ and constructors’ titles every year along the way.
Ferrari endured only their second winless season in F1 in the past 23 years last season, but while they were no match for their German rivals in 2016, they should have triumphed in Australia and Canada, only for poor strategy to wreck Vettel’s hopes of clinching victory.
The SF70H is clearly a step up for Ferrari, and the fact that it is not only quick, but it also appears to be better at conserving its tyres than the Mercedes, has the potential to give the Italian team their first championship success in almost a decade.
What will give Vettel and Ferrari so much satisfaction was this race was won in a clean fight with Mercedes. Indeed they were at a disadvantage in the opening stages as it was Hamilton who had track advantage and led ahead of Vettel.
But unlike the past three years the Mercedes did not disappear up the road. Vettel was able to sit behind Hamilton, never falling more than two seconds adrift.
While Hamilton was constantly on the pit radio complaining about tyre wear concerns, nothing was heard from Vettel as he continued to keep the Mercedes in range.
Hamilton was brought in at the end of Lap 17, but crucially his early stop meant he came back out in traffic behind the Red Bull Racing car of Max Verstappen.
In the past Mercedes and Hamilton had been able to either go quick enough to build up a big enough advantage to always come out in clear air, or make their tyres last longer than their rivals to again be guaranteed a clear horizon when they did pit.
But whether it is a failing of the W08 chassis, or simply the pressure of having Vettel pushing him, Hamilton could not make his tyres hold up, and it cost him the race.
Vettel was able to run an extra six laps at the front, and while Hamilton was held up by Verstappen, four-time world champion Vettel has opened up a sufficient lead that he came out ahead of the Red Bull and Mercedes when he did stop.
More ominously for Hamilton and Mercedes was the fact that when Verstappen did pit and Hamilton had a clear road again, he could do nothing about Vettel’s speed.
He was six seconds down at that stage and finished 9.9 seconds behind at the end, having to spend more time in the closing stages looking behind rather than in front as teammate Bottas put in a late charge to finish just 1.3 seconds adrift in third.
It has been a long time since F1 has had a close fight between two teams over a season. We are fresh from the Mercedes era, and before that was Red Bull’s dominance that saw them win the drivers’ and constructors’ double between 2010 and 2013.
Yes, Red Bull were taken to the final race at both the 2010 and 2012 races before Vettel, driving for them then, was world champion, but in both cases the Austrian team had the best car and it was only their own mistakes that had allowed rivals a chance.
Arguably 2008 was the last real duel between two teams, when Ferrari and McLaren went head-to-head, and it would be refreshing for the sport to have that this year with Ferrari and Mercedes.
“It’s just the beginning,” Vettel said in his post-race news conference. “Motivation has been really high but obviously it helps to wave from the podium.”
While this was not the thrilling on-track spectacle F1 had hoped for with the new faster cars, thanks to the aerodynamic changes, with little overtaking as cars struggled to stay close to the one ahead out of the corners, it does appear that thrills will be on offer from the title fight that looks set to occur between Vettel and Hamilton.
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