Vettel Cruises to Victory in Season Opener.
The opening race of the 2011 Formula One season saw Sebastian Vettel begin the defence of his world title in breath-taking fashion, as he stormed to a comprehensive and impressive victory in the Australian Grand Prix. Vettel - who led from pole-to-flag in Melbourne - has now led every lap of the last 3 Grands Prix, and looks the man to beat in a Red Bull car which once more appears streaks ahead of the rest of the field.
Vettel’s dominant display, in which he didn’t even require the use of the ‘Kers’ energy recovery system, is surely an ominous sign to his fellow drivers. Yet despite this, Lewis Hamilton’s second place finish has been met with a mixture of pleasure and relief by his McClaren team – his podium finish perhaps helping to allay pre-season fears that both he and Jenson Button would be facing a season in an uncompetitive car.
Button himself delivered a solid drive, finishing in 6th place, but was left to rue a drive through penalty incurred after he cut a chicane trying to overtake a frustrating Felipe Massa. For both McClaren drivers it was however an encouragingly competitive start to the season, after a poor pre-season marred by a worrying lack of pace and reliability.
Renault also started solidly, with Vitaly Petrov finishing in third place. Petrov’s drive will serve as solace for a Renault team without the services of the highly talented Robert Kubica - currently recovering from near career ending injuries suffered in a rallying accident.
Ferrari endured a relatively low-key start to the season, with the brooding Fernando Alonso pipping Vettel’s Red Bull teammate Mark Webber into fourth place at the death, whilst Felipe Massa was somewhat off the pace, finishing in 7th position.
Massa had finished the race in 9th, but was moved up to 7th by virtue of the Swiss outfit Sauber facing disqualification for infringing technical rules. Sauber’s drivers, Kamui Kobayashi and Formula One debutant Sergio Perez had both enjoyed exceptional races – finishing 8th and 7th respectively – and the 21 year old Mexican received particular plaudits, with Eddie Jordan citing it as ‘one of the finest debuts I have ever seen’.
But this was Vettel’s race. Whilst the German - who last year became the sport’s youngest ever World Champion – has been quick to deflect any talk of a season of dominance, his domineering display could well prove a sign of things to come throughout the 2011 season.
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