Ah, to be back in Australia again. As I write this, on the Thursday before the race, in the distance I can hear the roar of support race cars around Albert Park. This is a four day Grand Prix - none of Max Mosley's two day stuff here. After all, they've spent a long time putting up the course, they're going to be bloody well use it!
But it's not a regular Melbourne day. It's cloudy, it's not going to be as hot as it sometimes has been over the last few years. I can't remember seeing a cloud last year and the sky was pleasantly blue yesterday. Indeed, it's been sunny for every race here at Melbourne, but there's no sign of it today. Even so it's warm and hospitable and that's always what matters.
This will be the 18th Australian Grand Prix, and the seventh at here at Albert Park not far from downtown Melbourne. The other eleven Grands Prix, of course, were held in Adelaide, and each of those were the final race of the championship, just as Melbourne is now the first.
It's quite a country for Grand Prix motor racing. In its World Championship Grand Prix history, Australia have had 12 starters in Grands Prix of which two have been World Champions(Jack Brabham and Alan Jones) who were also the only two winners, while they and Australian GP clerk of the course Tim Schenken have also been points scorers. Another three drivers, including Sir Jack's son Gary, have failed to qualify for Grands Prix.
So Mark Webber will become the 13 starter when he takes to the track on Sunday and Paul Stoddart, of course, continues in Jack Brabham's shoes as a Grand Prix team owner.
The Australian Grand Prix, however, has a number of weird claims to fame. The 1991 race, for instance, is the shortest in the history of the World Championship, as it was stopped after just 24m 34.899s because of rain. That was just 52.920 kms or 32.883 miles - but it wasn't the shortest race ever in terms of laps, because the good old Nurburgring was so long that they often did fewer than the 14 laps raced at Adelaide that day.
That wasn't the only time the Australian Grand Prix was stopped. It was stopped twice in 1989, once after 21 laps because of an accident, and then at two hours/70 laps out of 81, because of rain. It was stopped at the end of the first lap in 1996 because of an accident too.
In 1995, Damon Hill won the first of two back-to-back Australian Grands Prix for Williams, and the first of a run of six successive Grand Prix wins for the team. He started from pole, took fastest lap and won by more than two laps from Olivier Panis, only the second time there had been such a margin.
Of course, Hill's win in 1996 had been at the expense of teammate Jacques Villeneuve, who started his first ever Grand Prix from pole position, he set fastest lap and nearly won the race. This was one of Williams's five victories in Australia.
McLaren have actually won the Australian Grand Prix the most times: seven. They've had two one-twos in that time, including the 1998 race when Hakkinen won by 0.7s from Coulthard. Mika started from pole and took fastest lap that race, which also marked Bridgestone's first win.
Ayrton Senna started Australian Grands Prix from pole on six occasions, including four in succession. At the other end of the scale, Jacques Laffite fought from 20th to 2nd in 1985. Less fraught was Gerhard Berger's 1987 win, from pole, flag-to-flag with fastest lap. It resulted in his photograph adorning the front page of the Adelaide telephone directory. The following year saw the last win for a turbo, and two years later, Adelaide was the scene of the 500th World Championship race.
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So who is going to do well and who isn't? Until last year, Mika Hakkinen had been on pole for the previous three races with David Coulthard going second to him. Mika had had won win and David had won back in 1997. Michael Schumacher had been third on the grid for the last four races and had never been lower than fourth on the grid in the last seven races. However, he had only had one win - until last year when he ended Mika's run of poles, and scored his second win.
Of the others, Ralf Schumacher has had two thirds, but three non-finishes, while Rubens Barrichello has qualified in the top four for the last three years and has been on the rostrum for the last two. Nick Heidfeld has finished both his Australian Grands Prix, including points last year. On the other hand, Jarno Trulli has finished only one of his five Australian Grands Prix!
The Ferrari tale continues in the Manufacturers' form. Ferrari have been in the first four in every one of the six races at Melbourne. They may not have inherited that form from Adelaide, but they have had the best record at Melbourne. McLaren hadn't actually been in the points for the last previous two years in Australia, but they finished second last year, having won the two races before that. Williams are probably the next most promising team, but failed to finish last year.
But just a quick word about Sauber. They have finished in points-winning positions for four of the last five races. Remember, they use a well tested and tried car, so it could well come home in the points again. Indeed, I would be on it!
Bob Constanduros
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