Australian Grand Prix, Melbourne: a little preview

There are just over two months left until the first grand prix of the 1 Formula 2019 World Championship which will be held on the Melbourne circuit in Australia. However, to while away the wait, here is a small preview of the first appointment of the season.

A bit of history…

Australia has hosted a total of 83 editions of the grand prix (34 for the Formula 1 world championship). Despite the circuitAlbert Park had already been active since the 50s, for about forty years it was not used due to protests by environmentalists in the area. Therefore, the editions from 1985 to 1996 were held on the circuit Adelaide. It was precisely in 1996 that it was decided to move the grand prix to Melbourne. A new starting straight was built with new pits; Furthermore, some curves were modified to slow down travel, while still maintaining a certain speed for a city circuit. The length of the circuit is 5,303 km with a total of 16 corners (10 to the right and 6 to the left). The circuit record (1'24"125) was recorded by Michael Schumacher su Ferrari on March 7, 2004, during the race.

Hall of Fame

The driver to have achieved the most victories at Albert Park was Michael Schumacher with four triumphs. The only Italian driver present in the Melbourne Roll of Honor is Giancarlo Fisichella who won the grand prix in 2005 with the Renault. Sebastian Vettel has scored three victories so far, followed by Lewis Hamilton e Kimi Raikkonen at two.

Team and drivers:

There will be a lot of curiosity to see some riders competing with new teams, one of which is the Monegasque Charles Leclerc, who will join Sebastian Vettel at Ferrari. The decision surprised many fans Daniel Ricciardo to leave a competitive team like the Red Bull to undertake a very demanding challenge at Renault. Also, what will Kimi Raikkonen's return toAlfa Romeo Sauber after 18 years? Among the welcome returns, we will see you back on track Robert Kubica at the wheel of Williams. With the departures of Fernando Alonso, Esteban Ocon, Sergey Sirotkin, Stoffel Vandoorne, Brendon Hartley and Marcus Ericcson, these will be the official drivers we will see lined up on the grid:

Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport: Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas
Scuderia Ferrari Mission Winnow: Sebastian Vettel, Charles Leclerc
Aston Martin Red Bull Racing: Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly
Renault F1 Team: Daniel Ricciardo, Nico Hulkenberg
Rich Energy Haas F1 Team: Romain Grosjean, Kevin Magnussen
McLaren F1 Team: Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris
Racing Point F1 Team: Sergio Perez, Lance Stroll
Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team: Kimi Raikkonen, Antonio Giovinazzi
Red Bull Toro Rosso Honda: Daniil Kvyat, Alexander Albon
Williams Racing: Robert Kubica, George Russell

The last edition 

Last year the grand prix winner was Sebastian Vettel, followed by Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen. Despite the Englishman's dominance in both free practice and qualifying, it was the German who prevailed, also thanks to a small mistake made by Hamilton in the final stages of the race which allowed Vettel to widen the gap to the finish line.

Times and live TV of the Australian Grand Prix

The live TV broadcast will be broadcast exclusively on Sky Sports F1 HD and, unless changed, the times should be as follows:

Friday 15 March 2019 PL1 at 3:00, PL2 at 7:00
Saturday 16 March 2019 PL3 at 5am, QUALIFYING at 00am
Sunday 17 March 2019 RACE at 7am