Albert Park Returns to F1, Maldonado Executing Dominating Performance

Qualifying:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Time
1	29	Pastor Maldonado		1:20.011
2	62	Jules Bianchi		1:20.163
3	2	Lewis Hamilton		1:20.288
4	27	Dave Cassidy		1:20.367
5	24	Kevin Magnussen		1:20.369
6	22	Jordan Davies		1:20.485
7	28	Daniel Melrose		1:20.603
8	31	Romain Grosjean		1:20.609
9	23	Pierre Gasly		1:20.638
10	1	Sebastian Vettel		1:20.741
11	30	Dean Stoneman		1:21.090
12	21	Stoffel Vandoorne		1:21.127
13	33	Einar Ármannsson		1:21.356
14	34	Valtteri Bottas		1:21.449
15	63	Diego Álvarez Torrente		1:21.499
16	32	Alexander Albon		1:21.638
17	5	Marvin Kirchhöfer		1:21.743
18	6	Santiago Urrutia		1:22.303
19	66	Pascal Wehrlein		1:22.442
20	90	Daniel Ricciardo		1:22.521
21	91	Max Verstappen		1:22.603
22	55	Artem Markelov		1:21.681*
23	119	Felix Rosenqvist		1:22.963
24	67	Mike Rockenfeller		1:23.002
25	118	Carlos Sainz Jr		1:23.007
26	56	Sergey Sirotkin		1:23.364

* given 5-place grid penalty for causing an avoidable accident

Report:

One of the most popular tracks that have departed from the F1 calendar in recent years was the Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne’s amazing dash that opened so many Formula One seasons. You can imagine the joy when Christian Horner and the government of the state Victoria announced a new deal that will see the Australian Grand Prix return to Melbourne for the next nine seasons.

However, it was on Formula 1 to deliver on the hype. A great track does not mean anything without great racing. Qualifying promised great things, as Pastor Maldonado performed a breathtaking lap to seize pole position despite carrying a very significant amount of success ballast with him. Jules Bianchi and Lewis Hamilton, however, were also ready to pounce on any chances as they sat close in P2 and P3.

Sauber refused to entertain the notion of an amazing brawl for the win, however, as Pastor Maldonado pulled away early in the race and went on to dominate the Grand Prix. He ended up winning this race by nearly half a minute, slightly slowing down in the end to save his car. Dean Stoneman also performed quite well to complete a nice race for the Swiss team, coming back from 11th to finish in 3rd place.

Two more big-time performances were seen by Dean Torrente, who improved by ten positions to finish in fifth place, and the reigning champion Sebastian Vettel. Unfortunately, where there is good, there also must be bad. Romain Grosjean caused a silly accident in turn 1 before suffering karma and retiring from the race. Daniel Melrose had a collision as well, costing Scuderia Ferrari two points.

Race:

Pos	#	Driver	Constructor	Time/Retired	Points
1	29	Pastor Maldonado		44:27.500	15
2	62	Jules Bianchi		+28.786	12
3	30	Dean Stoneman		+32.662	10
4	1	Sebastian Vettel		+33.111	8
5	63	Diego Álvarez Torrente		+36.690	6
6	22	Jordan Davies		+43.490	5
7	33	Einar Ármannsson		+44.186	4
8	34	Valtteri Bottas		+55.410	3
9	23	Pierre Gasly		+60.193	2
10	28	Daniel Melrose		+50.222*	1
11	27	Dave Cassidy		+71.455	0
12	32	Alexander Albon		+72.678	0
13	6	Santiago Urrutia		1 Lap	0
14	66	Pascal Wehrlein		1 Lap	0
15	2	Lewis Hamilton		1 Lap	0
16	67	Mike Rockenfeller		1 Lap	0
17	5	Marvin Kirchhöfer		1 Lap	0
18	119	Felix Rosenqvist		1 Lap	0
19	56	Sergey Sirotkin		1 Lap	0
20	91	Max Verstappen		1 Lap	0
21	118	Carlos Sainz Jr		1 Lap	0
DNF	55	Artem Markelov		Transmission	0
DNF	90	Daniel Ricciardo		Transmission	0
DNF	31	Romain Grosjean		Oil Leak	0
DNF	24	Kevin Magnussen		Collision	0
DNF	21	Stoffel Vandoorne		Collision	0

* given 20-second penalty for causing an avoidable accident

Fastest Lap:

Pastor Maldonado – 1:22.768

Infinite Improbability Drive Of The Race:

Jordan Davies – after struggling earlier this season, he scored some good points now.

Reject Of The Race:

Romain Grosjean – was a proper nutcase on lap one and then retired without showing much before.