[mjk24]

Originally Posted by prashant316

Race of the year so far.

In all, Sky wins this race for me.

Sky is F1.
Martin Brundle alone is enough reason to watch Sky.
His insights are unparalleled, shame he doesn't turn up for all the races.
Martin paired with the iconic David Croft is a legendary combo.

As for Ted, I feel that's where most of the Biased talk comes in.
I greatly enjoy his humor & insights, especially his Notebook segments.
But even as a Hamilton fan, his bias towards Lewis is borderline toxic and annoying.

[udidecoy.2302]

Biggest losers of the race, FIA, Both the Alpines and Carlos Sainz Jr (in the same order IMHO)

[anand_roy]

Originally Posted by Hatari

What would you do?

Declare the winners and the final classification in the pit lane itself.

Obviously, a modifications of rules would be needed to ensure such inconsequential laps are not run.

[rx100]

Originally Posted by anand_roy

Declare the winners and the final classification in the pit lane itself.

Obviously, a modifications of rules would be needed to ensure such inconsequential laps are not run.

Then Alpine would be classified in points as they were counting a lap back. A restart means they cannot take part in 1 lap procession under SC.

On topic of the race, I think both the red flags were unnecessary for Albon and Magnussen. They could have used pit lane while cleaning the track by marshals.

Last race also they brought an unnecessary SC when the car was clearly off the racing track. Later race control blamed GPS that it showed the stricken car was on track.

[amitoj]

At one point, Max had a 10 second lead over Hamilton in second place. That Red Bull in Max's hands looks unbeatable right now.

As for the FIA stewards, I think they want a bigger role in the Drive to Survive series' next season

But the story of the season so far for me is Aston Martin. They are running second in Constructors and Alonso is 3rd in WDC! How have they managed to turn things around? They must have thrown a lot of money on the problems they had last year, but what did they throw it on?

[benbsb29]

Had a chance to watch the 2023 Australian F1 Grand Prix live in Melbourne, my first time at an F1 event. As we all know, there was no shortage of action and drama and 3 race starts meant we got to enjoy it all from our vantage position.

Some pics i clicked:

Formula 2 in action






The Show Car






RAAF Display






Pre-race events




George Russel walks back to the pits after his car caught fire




Spectators throng the track even before the Safety Car has completed the final lap, including climbing the fences despite repeated pleas not to

[Scarlet_Rider]

Originally Posted by amitoj

They must have thrown a lot of money on the problems they had last year, but what did they throw it on?

The key factor for them was employing Dan Fallows as their technical director. He was previously the head of aerodynamics at Red Bull. Hence someone in paddock (not sure who) had joked during one of the first 2 races of the season saying that there are 3 Red Bulls on the podium!

[anand_roy]

Originally Posted by rx100

Then Alpine would be classified in points as they were counting a lap back. A restart means they cannot take part in 1 lap procession under SC.

After the third red flag, the stewards decided the order, then asked the cars to be aligned as per the new order in the pit lane and then restarted the race behind the safety car and then let it end in one lap.

Instead, they could have changed the order in their timing software and just published the revised classification. I just do not understand what the one lap behind the safety car achieves when the race order was decided by manually pushing the cars in the pit lane!!

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by anand_roy

Instead, they could have changed the order in their timing software and just published the revised classification. I just do not understand what the one lap behind the safety car achieves when the race order was decided by manually pushing the cars in the pit lane!!

Timing software cannot be 'tampered' with, it is sacrosanct.

Originally Posted by anand_roy

Declare the winners and the final classification in the pit lane itself.

Obviously, a modifications of rules would be needed to ensure such inconsequential laps are not run.

That leaves an unfinished race when there was ample time to.

In addition, it robs the drivers/crowd/TV viewers of a finish on the main straight with the traditional chequered flag photo ops etc.

-------

I feel it should be a rolling start when there are 5 laps or less in a GP to go.
Much safer and ensures no desperate dives on the brakes.

[anand_roy]

Originally Posted by Hatari

Timing software cannot be 'tampered' with, it is sacrosanct.

Exactly why there needs to be a change in rules (and update to the software to accommodate such cases) so that an inconsequential lap is not run and there is no need to manually push cars to put them in their correct places in the pit lane!!

In a F1 race, they are manually putting cars in correct places! How ridiculous is that? Can it get any more comical?

Originally Posted by Hatari

That leaves an unfinished race when there was ample time to.

In addition, it robs the drivers/crowd/TV viewers of a finish on the main straight with the traditional chequered flag photo ops etc.

Let's agree to disagree. It got plain and simple boring in the end. The joy and euphoria was entirely missing when Max got out of the car after he parked it at the end. Doesn't that say something?

Even in the commentary, Crofty was wondering about the need of the last lap and Martin Brundle was at pains to explain the need of it.

[prashant316]

Originally Posted by mjk24

As for Ted, I feel that's where most of the Biased talk comes in.

Originally Posted by prashant316

There is a lot of chatter on social media that Sky and especially Ted are biased towards the British drivers and especially Lewis. I kept a keen ear out for this one as well. I personally didnt feel so much of that. Probably there are a lot of Dutch fans commenting on social media these days. Anyone else feeling Sky is biased towards the English drivers?

Social Media surely agrees with the biasedness.

[mayankk]

Originally Posted by anand_roy

Exactly why there needs to be a change in rules (and update to the software to accommodate such cases) so that an inconsequential lap is not run and there is no need to manually push cars to put them in their correct places in the pit lane!!

In a F1 race, they are manually putting cars in correct places! How ridiculous is that? Can it get any more comical?



Let's agree to disagree. It got plain and simple boring in the end. The joy and euphoria was entirely missing when Max got out of the car after he parked it at the end. Doesn't that say something?

Even in the commentary, Crofty was wondering about the need of the last lap and Martin Brundle was at pains to explain the need of it.

Its all just rules.
The cars had to be put in order in the pits because they could not overtake anyone on track. Nor could they be allowed to go by and join up in proper places because of the lack of even one more lap.

Without that lap being run, there could not be a formal classification of the cars having crossed a sector point. Then it would have been even more fireworks between teams who got shuffled after the penultimate start, and the unshuffled status which was implemented. Even so, haas is making noises, but now the FIA can clearly point at the rules. Nothing was left open-ended.

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by anand_roy

Exactly why there needs to be a change in rules (and update to the software to accommodate such cases) so that an inconsequential lap is not run and there is no need to manually push cars to put them in their correct places in the pit lane!!

In a F1 race, they are manually putting cars in correct places! How ridiculous is that? Can it get any more comical?

Let's agree to disagree. It got plain and simple boring in the end. The joy and euphoria was entirely missing when Max got out of the car after he parked it at the end. Doesn't that say something?

Even in the commentary, Crofty was wondering about the need of the last lap and Martin Brundle was at pains to explain the need of it.

Im putting forward my reasons on how to make the best of the events after the chaos of the standing start.

Regardless of the timing software, the final lap gives a chance for the crowd to see first hand the race ending order, from the best place, which is the pit straight.
In addition, it gives the drivers a chance to interact/wave etc to the crowd on the slow in lap back to the pits/parc ferme.

Both of these would be denied under your choice of finish.

Also you actually think ending the race right after all those incidents and/or 10-15 mins of the cars being in the pitlane while the debris/damaged cars were being cleared after the final red flag would have been more exiting than how it finally did!?

If it did end without the cars going out, did you expect Max to jump out of the car with joy (in the pitlane) punching the air, after numerous incidents/crashes!?

[anand_roy]

Originally Posted by Hatari

Also you actually think ending the race right after all those incidents and/or 10-15 mins of the cars being in the pitlane while the debris/damaged cars were being cleared after the final red flag would have been more exiting than how it finally did!?

If it did end without the cars going out, did you expect Max to jump out of the car with joy (in the pitlane) punching the air, after numerous incidents/crashes!?

That is absolutely not what I am suggesting. It should not be always about the "show" and photo ops and waving to the crowd. That can happen from the podium as well.

Sometimes, common sense needs to prevail - and it was evident (IMO) that it was in short supply.

[kiku007]

I travelled interstate with family and friends to watch the 2023 Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix and wanted to share our experience of being part of a Formula 1 event for the first time.

We were there for the Raceday only and were seated at the Fangio Grandstand which is in the main straight and opposite to the pit lane and podium.

What we loved?

• The experience of watching the Formula 1, Formula 2, V8 Supercars live in action. The visual and aural experience can't be expressed in words. One has to see it in person to fully comprehend Max and Red Bull's lead from the rest of the field. There's access to big screens and live commentary. So, we don't miss the action from other areas of the track.

• Drivers parade. The drivers spend a lot of time in the main straight/beginning of the parade. This is where they give interviews, walk to the crowd and wave etc. The fans went crazy when the drivers waved at them. All drivers genuinely acknowledged the fans. It was good to see the high level of support drivers like Yuki, Albon, Oscar and Lando got. Yuki is a celebrity!!

• The race start and the chequered flag finish. We got the most bang for our buck. Three starts for the price of one ticket. lol.

• It was a very well-organized event. Right from the free public transport to the respectful spectators. Totally family friendly event. This is notable considering what happened at Austria last year. People did breach the track invasion protocols, but no one misbehaved with a fellow human.

• Melbourne. Sports, culture, food, shopping. This city has it all and does it great.

What we missed or not enjoy?

• We didn't see any live action overtaking in front of us. Cars just flew past us, and this was expected from the Fangio Grandstand. We did see George's engine blow up though. Poor George.

• Expensive merchandise. $90 for a cap? No thanks please.

• The queues for food, toilet and the return Tram service.

• Since this was our first event and we were with kids, we didn't check out any of the non-track events. That's for next time I suppose.

If you are a Formula 1 /Drive to survive fan then, I would highly recommend you visit one of these events and watch the race from a Grandstand. The ParkPass tickets may be cheaper but there's a reason why they are cheap.

I'll share some information that might help to plan your 2024 Australian Grand Prix.

Tickets:

• The dates for the 2023 Melbourne Grand Prix were announced in 2022 August. We were advised to register our interest for tickets with grandprix.com.au.

• I went ahead and booked the flight tickets in August. The ticket prices were quite cheap back then compared to November 2022 when the GP tickets went on sale.

• I asked my brain trust for guidance on which Grandstand to pick and they delivered.

• The ticket sale dates were announced in early November.

• Thankfully a friend shared their AusGP Access code with me to book tickets. We were able to get the tickets we wanted ahead of others who didn't have the AusGP package. The Grandstand tickets got sold out in hours!

Engaging the family:

• I believe that one should not impose/force our hobbies/interests on family. It has to be organic.
• I would show them interesting content from Drive to Survive, Race Highlights, Conor Moore impressions to bring them up to speed on Formula 1. The Kayo sports streaming channel/App helped a lot. This helped them to understand the sport and the drivers. F1 is now part of our discussions now.
• Make it a family holiday. We included visiting friends, shopping, trip to Bendigo etc. as a part of our trip.

A small birthday celebration:



The Great Stupa of Universal Compassion at Bendigo:


Planning for the event:

• Melbourne weather is unpredictable. So, for March/April we need to pack clothes accordingly.
• I got ear muffs and ear plugs. The kids liked the overhead ear muffs. However, the ear plugs are more than enough for Formula 1. I'm selling the ear muffs in the market place now. Sigh.

Transport:

• Free public transport is offered from the city centre to Albert Park. The trip to the track was comfortable but the return after the race wasn't. There were thousands of people and we were crammed inside the tram. It is what it is, and it still was the quickest way back.

• We were in Melbourne for 4 days with a plan to visit Bendigo on the last day. I took a decision not to drive when in the city and Uber instead. I didn't have to bother with driving in the traffic or parking. I also enjoy travelling in different cars. We were driven around in cars like the Camry, Carnival, Lancer, Captiva, Model 3 etc. The Model 3 Uber driver said he had driven Formula 3 Racing Driver Sophia Florsh to Albert Park that morning. Apparently, he had asked her if she was going to Albert Park to watch the race and she humbly replied that she's going to race. He was disappointed that he didn't get a selfie with her.
• We also got MyKi (The public transport smart card for Melbourne) for use in the Trams.
• For the last day, I was able to get a good deal with SIXT rental and booked a premium sedan at the price of a regular sedan. The BMW 320i was a great choice for our ~450 Kms intercity trip. Loved the driving dynamics of the car. A 330i would have been nicer but I'm not complaining. I kept my iPhone13 on the wireless charging pad and connected to Carplay wirelessly. The phone was toasted, and it was charging very slowly. I now understand that there's heating issues with wireless Carplay.

Final thoughts:

• Drive to Survive and Liberty Media have changed Formula 1 forever. One may love or hate their antics, but you know what, the sport has attracted new audience and especially more young women. Are they leaning more towards entertainment than pure racing? May be but I don't mind as long as the sport lives. Look at the numbers! Just mind boggling.

• FIA's decisions are confusing, inconsistent and at times make no sense. I hope they get their act together and be more consistent.
• Life is short. Fulfill your dreams before it is too late. I don't know why I delayed this experience for so long.

Some interesting videos:

• How Reality TV Saved F1 from Itself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjS0KkifgDw

• Building Albert Park - Australia's Biggest Pop-up Event:

https://youtu.be/ltcdYkAGVQ8

• Conor Moore's take on the Melbourne GP: