Uncertainty looms over competitive F1 season ahead
Formula 1
With a five-way drivers battle and a four-way fight for the constructor's championship, the sport is gearing up for a highly competitive season.
All eyes are on Albert Park as Formula 1 gets ready to kick off its 75th season in Australia this weekend. After a strong finish in 2023, McLaren enters the new season with high expectations, though Red Bull remains the team to beat. Their most experienced driver, Lando Norris, said that he looks ahead at a "tough weekend." The Briton, however, maintains that the MCL39 has what it takes for the team to "start off in a strong and confident way," reports F1.
"I don’t think in any way we’re superior to any of our main competitors – there’s obviously been a lot of chat [about] that and a lot of things said over the past couple of weeks, but I really don’t think we’re any further ahead of our competitors than we were last season or that people think we are," Norris said.
His teammate, Oscar Piastri, somewhat echoed Norris’s sentiment. "No one really knows what to expect. Testing went pretty well, but you don't know where everybody sits. I think we're pretty happy with how our test went, but Melbourne is a completely different track to Bahrain; the weather is going to be different to Bahrain and different every hour by the look of it. It's going to be an interesting weekend, for sure," Piastri said.
Reigning world champion Max Verstappen, alongside his Red Bull teammate Sergio Pérez, arrived in Australia with an open mind. When asked about his hopes for the season ahead in the FIA press conference, Verstappen said, "I don't know, I guess we'll find out more this weekend and after... I think testing is not many days so we found that there are already a few areas that we can work on so that's what we will continue to do." Verstappen, however, maintains that the RB21 is an improvement over the RB20, which, despite dominance for much of 2023, showed some vulnerabilities in the latter part of the season.
HAMILTON
Months after Lewis Hamilton’s bombshell move to Ferrari was announced, the sight of the seven-time world champion donning Ferrari red in Australia is still a seismic moment for the sport.
"I've been itching to get going – and to think that this is going to be my first Grand Prix with the team, one of those other firsts – I feel very honoured and very grateful to have the opportunity ... This is the most exciting period of my life," Hamilton said ahead of the weekend.
Carlos Sainz, whose future remains uncertain after being replaced at Ferrari to make space for Hamilton, also appeared optimistic about his next steps. Despite Williams being a backmarker in recent history, the team has committed to returning the Williams name to its former glory, with team principal James Vowles at the helm.
"I definitely think it has been a positive start. I think the positive start started in the Abu Dhabi test already. As soon as I jumped in the car and I started working with the people I was going to work with this year I felt that I had just joined a team full of motivation, full of people wanting to bring this team back to the front. The car also didn't disappoint me – I think it was a good test overall in Abu Dhabi and then we had a strong winter in development," Sainz said about his first impressions of his new team.
With a potential five-way Drivers’ Championship fight involving Charles Leclerc, Hamilton, Norris, Piastri, and Verstappen appearing likely this season, F1.com journalist Lawrence Baretto says the entire grid is in for a tight battle this season. "Talking to drivers and teams, I feel that what they thought was going to happen and what they thought they saw at testing is where they are this weekend ... I think it's going to be the closest season ever. The data showed in testing just how close the top four are, how close the midfield six are and how close those two packs are together. We're going to have to wait three or four races to see what the real pecking order is, but I think it's really exciting," said Baretto.
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"I don’t think in any way we’re superior to any of our main competitors – there’s obviously been a lot of chat [about] that and a lot of things said over the past couple of weeks, but I really don’t think we’re any further ahead of our competitors than we were last season or that people think we are," Norris said.
His teammate, Oscar Piastri, somewhat echoed Norris’s sentiment. "No one really knows what to expect. Testing went pretty well, but you don't know where everybody sits. I think we're pretty happy with how our test went, but Melbourne is a completely different track to Bahrain; the weather is going to be different to Bahrain and different every hour by the look of it. It's going to be an interesting weekend, for sure," Piastri said.
Reigning world champion Max Verstappen, alongside his Red Bull teammate Sergio Pérez, arrived in Australia with an open mind. When asked about his hopes for the season ahead in the FIA press conference, Verstappen said, "I don't know, I guess we'll find out more this weekend and after... I think testing is not many days so we found that there are already a few areas that we can work on so that's what we will continue to do." Verstappen, however, maintains that the RB21 is an improvement over the RB20, which, despite dominance for much of 2023, showed some vulnerabilities in the latter part of the season.
HAMILTON
Months after Lewis Hamilton’s bombshell move to Ferrari was announced, the sight of the seven-time world champion donning Ferrari red in Australia is still a seismic moment for the sport.
"I've been itching to get going – and to think that this is going to be my first Grand Prix with the team, one of those other firsts – I feel very honoured and very grateful to have the opportunity ... This is the most exciting period of my life," Hamilton said ahead of the weekend.
Carlos Sainz, whose future remains uncertain after being replaced at Ferrari to make space for Hamilton, also appeared optimistic about his next steps. Despite Williams being a backmarker in recent history, the team has committed to returning the Williams name to its former glory, with team principal James Vowles at the helm.
"I definitely think it has been a positive start. I think the positive start started in the Abu Dhabi test already. As soon as I jumped in the car and I started working with the people I was going to work with this year I felt that I had just joined a team full of motivation, full of people wanting to bring this team back to the front. The car also didn't disappoint me – I think it was a good test overall in Abu Dhabi and then we had a strong winter in development," Sainz said about his first impressions of his new team.
With a potential five-way Drivers’ Championship fight involving Charles Leclerc, Hamilton, Norris, Piastri, and Verstappen appearing likely this season, F1.com journalist Lawrence Baretto says the entire grid is in for a tight battle this season. "Talking to drivers and teams, I feel that what they thought was going to happen and what they thought they saw at testing is where they are this weekend ... I think it's going to be the closest season ever. The data showed in testing just how close the top four are, how close the midfield six are and how close those two packs are together. We're going to have to wait three or four races to see what the real pecking order is, but I think it's really exciting," said Baretto.
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