The 2023 Australian Grand Prix (officially the Formula One Rolex Australian Grand Prix 2023) was the 3rd round of the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship, held at Albert Park Circuit on the weekend of 31st March to 2nd April 2023.
Background[]
Championship standings before the race[]
Going into the weekend, Max Verstappen narrowly leads the World Drivers' Championship with 44 points, one point from his teammate Sergio Pérez, second, and 14 from Fernando Alonso in third. Red Bull Racing, with 87 points, leads the Constructors' Championship from Aston Martin and Mercedes, who both have 38 points.[1]
Track changes[]
Following the 2021 redevelopment of the Albert Park Circuit and the removal of the turn 9–10 chicane, a fourth DRS zone was proposed and installed between turns 8–9. After the first day of practice session during the 2022 Australian Grand Prix weekend, the new DRS zone was scrapped due to safety concerns raised by some of the drivers.[2] The Grand Prix chief Andrew Westacott told Melbourne's Herald Sun that the DRS zone would be reimplemented for this edition after receiving positive feedback from the FIA and Formula One.[3] Unlike the previous edition when four DRS zones were initially added, the first DRS detection point was moved further back, being positioned 40 metres (130 ft) after turn 6. As a result, the first DRS activation point was moved further back, being positioned 130 metres (430 ft) after panel 11.
Entry List[]
The full entry list for the 2023 Australian Grand Prix is outlined below:
Practice[]
FP1[]
FP2[]
FP3[]
Practice Results[]
The full practice results for the 2023 Australian Grand Prix are outlined below:
| No. | Driver | Team | FP1 | FP2 | FP3 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Pos | Time | Pos | Time | Pos | ||||||||
| 1 |  Max Verstappen
|
 Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT
|
1:18.790 | 1 | 1:19.502 | 3 | 1:17.565 | 1 | |||||
| 2 |  Logan Sargeant
|
 Williams-Mercedes
|
1:20.074 | 15 | DNP | 1:18.947 | 17 | ||||||
| 4 | Lando Norris
|
McLaren-Mercedes
|
1:19.536 | 7 | 1:20.176 | 8 | 1:19.146 | 20 | |||||
| 10 |  Pierre Gasly
|
Alpine-Renault
|
1:19.646 | 8 | 1:20.206 | 10 | 1:18.094 | 5 | |||||
| 11 |  Sergio Pérez
|
Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT
|
1:19.293 | 3 | 1:20.083 | 7 | 1:18.123 | 6 | |||||
| 14 |  Fernando Alonso
|
Aston Martin-Mercedes
|
1:19.317 | 4 | 1:18.887 | 1 | 1:17.727 | 2 | |||||
| 16 |  Charles Leclerc
|
 Ferrari
|
1:19.378 | 5 | 1:19.332 | 2 | 1:18.691 | 13 | |||||
| 18 |  Lance Stroll
|
Aston Martin-Mercedes
|
1:19.766 | 10 | 1:20.579 | 16 | 1:18.198 | 9 | |||||
| 20 |  Kevin Magnussen
|
Haas-Ferrari
|
1:21.147 | 20 | 1:21.266 | 19 | 1:19.056 | 18 | |||||
| 21 | Nyck de Vries
|
AlphaTauri-Honda RBPT
|
1:19.933 | 14 | 1:20.600 | 17 | 1:19.092 | 19 | |||||
| 22 |  Yuki Tsunoda
|
AlphaTauri-Honda RBPT
|
1:20.399 | 17 | 1:20.220 | 11 | 1:18.901 | 16 | |||||
| 23 |  Alexander Albon
|
Williams-Mercedes
|
1:19.766 | 11 | 1:21.182 | 18 | 1:18.553 | 12 | |||||
| 24 |  Guanyu Zhou
|
 Alfa Romeo-Ferrari
|
1:20.569 | 19 | 1:20.470 | 15 | 1:18.330 | 10 | |||||
| 27 |  Nico Hülkenberg
|
Haas-Ferrari
|
1:19.806 | 13 | 1:20.194 | 9 | 1:18.410 | 11 | |||||
| 31 | Esteban Ocon
|
Alpine-Renault
|
1:20.175 | 16 | 1:19.725 | 6 | 1:17.938 | 3 | |||||
| 44 | Lewis Hamilton
|
Mercedes
|
1:19.223 | 2 | 1:20.323 | 13 | 1:18.138 | 8 | |||||
| 55 | Carlos Sainz, Jr.
|
Ferrari
|
1:19.505 | 6 | 1:19.695 | 5 | 1:18.127 | 7 | |||||
| 63 | George Russell
|
Mercedes
|
1:19.699 | 9 | 1:19.672 | 4 | 1:17.955 | 4 | |||||
| 77 |  Valtteri Bottas
|
Alfa Romeo-Ferrari
|
1:20.419 | 18 | 1:20.312 | 12 | 1:18.809 | 15 | |||||
| 81 |  Oscar Piastri
|
McLaren-Mercedes
|
1:19.777 | 12 | 1:20.380 | 14 | 1:18.713 | 14 | |||||
| Source: [5][6][7] | |||||||||||||
Qualifying[]
Qualifying Report[]
Qualifying was held 1st April 2023 at 15:00 local time (UTC+11).
Q1[]
In the first segment, Sergio Pérez locked up and went into the gravel, causing a red flag. He joined Oscar Piastri, Guanyu Zhou, Logan Sargeant and Valtteri Bottas in being knocked out of the session.
Q2[]
During the second session, Lando Norris, who qualified thirteenth, went into the gravel; he joined Esteban Ocon, Yuki Tsunoda, Kevin Magnussen and Nyck de Vries out in the second session. Nico Hülkenberg placed as high as fifth in the second session.
Q3[]
In the third session, Max Verstappen reported minor issues with his car's mechanics, eventually taking pole position with George Russell taking second behind his teammate Lewis Hamilton. Charles Leclerc, who qualified seventh, criticised his own driving, saying that "I wasn't on it. I wasn't driving well. I wasn't putting everything together, so that was my fault."[8]
Qualifying Results[]
The full qualifying results for the 2023 Australian Grand Prix are outlined below:
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Grid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Time | Time | |||||
| 1 | 1 | Max Verstappen
|
Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT
|
1:17.384 | 1:17.056 | 1:16.732 | 1 |
| 2 | 63 | George Russell
|
Mercedes
|
1:17.653 | 1:17.513 | 1:16.968 | 2 |
| 3 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton
|
Mercedes
|
1:17.689 | 1:17.511 | 1:17.104 | 3 |
| 4 | 14 | Fernando Alonso
|
Aston Martin-Mercedes
|
1:17.832 | 1:17.283 | 1:17.139 | 4 |
| 5 | 55 | Carlos Sainz, Jr.
|
Ferrari
|
1:17.928 | 1:17.349 | 1:17.270 | 5 |
| 6 | 18 | Lance Stroll
|
Aston Martin-Mercedes
|
1:17.873 | 1:17.616 | 1:17.308 | 6 |
| 7 | 16 | Charles Leclerc
|
Ferrari
|
1:18.218 | 1:17.390 | 1:17.369 | 7 |
| 8 | 23 | Alexander Albon
|
Williams-Mercedes
|
1:17.962 | 1:17.761 | 1:17.609 | 8 |
| 9 | 10 | Pierre Gasly
|
Alpine-Renault
|
1:18.312 | 1:17.574 | 1:17.675 | 9 |
| 10 | 27 | Nico Hülkenberg
|
Haas-Ferrari
|
1:18.029 | 1:17.412 | 1:17.735 | 10 |
| 11 | 31 | Esteban Ocon
|
Alpine-Renault
|
1:17.770 | 1:17.768 | N/A | 11 |
| 12 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda
|
AlphaTauri-Honda RBPT
|
1:18.471 | 1:18.099 | N/A | 12 |
| 13 | 4 | Lando Norris
|
McLaren-Mercedes
|
1:18.243 | 1:18.119 | N/A | 13 |
| 14 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen
|
Haas-Ferrari
|
1:18.159 | 1:18.129 | N/A | 14 |
| 15 | 21 | Nyck de Vries
|
AlphaTauri-Honda RBPT
|
1:18.450 | 1:18.335 | N/A | 15 |
| 16 | 81 | Oscar Piastri
|
McLaren-Mercedes
|
1:18.517 | N/A | N/A | 16 |
| 17 | 24 | Guanyu Zhou
|
Alfa Romeo-Ferrari
|
1:18.540 | N/A | N/A | 17 |
| 18 | 2 | Logan Sargeant
|
Williams-Mercedes
|
1:18.557 | N/A | N/A | 18 |
| 19 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas
|
Alfa Romeo-Ferrari
|
1:18.714 | N/A | N/A | PL[9] |
| 107% Time: 1:22.800 | |||||||
| NC | 11 | Sergio Pérez
|
Red Bull Racing-Honda RBPT
|
No Time | N/A | N/A | PL[10][11] |
| Source:[12] | |||||||
Notes
- Bold indicates the fastest driver's time in each session.
- Sergio Pérez failed to set a time during Q1. He was permitted to race at the stewards' discretion. [10]
Grid[]
| Pos. | Pos. | |
|---|---|---|
| Driver | Driver | |
| ______________ | ||
| Row 1 | 1 | ______________ |
| Verstappen
|
2 | |
| ______________ | Russell
| |
| Row 2 | 3 | ______________ |
| Hamilton
|
4 | |
| ______________ | Alonso
| |
| Row 3 | 5 | ______________ |
| Sainz
|
6 | |
| ______________ | Stroll
| |
| Row 4 | 7 | ______________ |
| Leclerc
|
8 | |
| ______________ | Albon
| |
| Row 5 | 9 | ______________ |
| Gasly
|
10 | |
| ______________ | Hülkenberg
| |
| Row 6 | 11 | ______________ |
| Ocon
|
12 | |
| ______________ | Tsunoda
| |
| Row 7 | 13 | ______________ |
| Norris
|
14 | |
| ______________ | Magnussen
| |
| Row 8 | 15 | ______________ |
| De Vries
|
16 | |
| ______________ | Piastri
| |
| Row 9 | 17 | ______________ |
| Zhou
|
18 | |
| ______________ | Sargeant
| |
| Row 10 | 19 | ______________ |
| Bottas |
20 | |
| ______________ | Pérez |
Grid Penalty[]
- Valtteri Bottas started the race in the Pit Lane as the team changed the setup of the suspension system under Parc Ferme.[9]
- Sergio Pérez started the race in the Pit Lane as he used his 3rd Energy Store (ES) and 3rd Control Electronics (CE) under Parc Ferme Condition.[11]
Race[]
The race was held on 2 April 2023 at 16:00 local time (UTC+10).
Race Report[]
George Russell squeezed past pole-sitter Max Verstappen, who suffered wheelspin, to take the lead of the race until a first-lap retirement for Charles Leclerc at turn three due to contact with Lance Stroll sent him into the gravel and out of the race, resulting in the safety car being called in.[13] However, no further action by the stewards was taken.
The race restarted on lap 4. Two laps later, Alexander Albon lost control of his car and crashed heavily at turn seven, causing the safety car to be called out again;[14] Russell swapped his tyres into fresh hard compounds, allowing his teammate Lewis Hamilton to inherit the lead. Carlos Sainz Jr. followed suit moments later. However, moments later, the race was red-flagged to allow marshals to clean up the debris left by Albon's car, which had been strewn on-track. As Russell and Sainz had just changed their tyres in the safety car period, this jeopardised their strategies.[15]
Hamilton started on the frontmost row as the race restarted, but would soon lose the lead into turn nine as Verstappen overtook him with his DRS on. Russell overtook Gasly for fourth on lap 14, with Sainz overtaking Lance Stroll in the following lap. On Lap 18, Russell's engine burst into flames, causing Mercedes' first mechanical retirement of the season and causing a brief virtual safety car period. Verstappen would go on to lead the race comfortably, despite a brief moment on lap 46 where he understeered into the final corners. However, the race was red-flagged once again on lap 56 once the rear of Kevin Magnussen's car made contact with the wall at turn two, detaching the right tyre.[14]
The race was restarted with Verstappen on the frontmost row, but soon, a series of accidents that resulted in Sainz pushing Fernando Alonso into a spin in turn two, the Alpines of Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon ending their races in the wall, and Nyck de Vries and Logan Sargeant finding themselves in the gravel and out of the race; Stroll, despite also running into the gravel amidst the chaos, managed to continue. The race was red-flagged once again.
Following the third red flag, there was confusion on how the race would be restarted. The marshals would restart the race under the safety car, on the final lap and in the running order taken prior to the red flag. Max Verstappen won his first Australian Grand Prix victory ahead of Hamilton and Alonso; Pérez would finish fifth after a pit lane start. Home hero Oscar Piastri finished his home race in eighth and in the points alongside teammate Lando Norris, marking McLaren's first points finish of the season.[13]
Post-race[]
After an investigation of Gasly's crash with Ocon, no further action was taken.[16] Gasly had accumulated ten penalty points coming into the event; if he had been penalised, he would have been banned from the following race at Azerbaijan.
Following the race, Sainz, who finished fourth, was handed a five-second penalty for the collision with Alonso on the second restart. This dropped him down to twelfth place.[15] Sainz criticised the penalty, stating that it was "the most unfair penalty I've ever seen in my life".[17] Haas lodged a protest following the race regarding its provisional classification, where both Hülkenberg and Haas could have achieved their first podium finish.[18] However, it was rejected by the racing stewards.[19]
The FIA came under scrutiny from several drivers due to its handling of the red flags and restarts, which had affected the strategies of Russell, Sainz, Verstappen and Hülkenberg; the Haas driver had been running as high as fourth place before the third red flag came out, with the subsequent restart dropping him down to seventh.[20]
Race Results[]
The official race results for the 2023 Australian Grand Prix are outlined below:
Note:
- Pierre Gasly, Esteban Ocon, Nyck de Vries, Logan Sargeant and Kevin Magnussen were classified as they completed more than 90% of the race distance.[22]
- Carlos Sainz, Jr. originally finished fourth, but he received a five-second time penalty as he caused a collision with Fernando Alonso[21]
Milestones[]
- Maiden Front row start of George Russell in 2023
- Second Front row start of Mercedes Powertrains this season
- 2nd pole for Max Verstappen in 2023
- 22nd career pole of Max Verstappen
- This race marks the most red flags given out in a single grand prix, suppressing the record of 2 red-flagged race multiple times, the latest race that has two red flags given out was 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
- Maiden podium finish of Lewis Hamilton in 2023
- First Fastest Lap of Sergio Pérez in 2023
- Maiden point-scoring finish of Oscar Piastri
- Maiden point-scoring finish of Guanyu Zhou, Yuki Tsunoda and Nico Hülkenberg in 2023
Standings[]
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
See Also[]
|
|
References[]
Images and Videos:
References:
- ↑ "F1 championship standings after 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix" (in en). https://racingnews365.com/f1-championship-standings-after-2023-saudi-arabian-grand-prix. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
- ↑ "FIA removes one F1 DRS zone at Albert Park on safety grounds". 8 April 2022. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/fia-removes-f1-drs-zone-melbourne/9735951/. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
- ↑ "Albert Park set to feature four DRS zones at 2023 Australian GP". 20 February 2023. https://www.motorsportweek.com/2023/02/20/albert-park-set-to-feature-four-drs-zones-at-2023-australian-gp/. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
- ↑ 2023 Australian Grand Prix - Entry List (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
- ↑ 2023 Australian Grand Prix - FP1 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
- ↑ 2023 Australian Grand Prix - FP2 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
- ↑ 2023 Australian Grand Prix - FP3 Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
- ↑ "Leclerc blames own driving and Sainz miscommunication for poor Australian F1 qualifying". 1 April 2023. https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/leclerc-blames-own-driving-and-sainz-miscommunication-for-poor-australian-f1-qualifying/10451471/. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "Decision - Car 77 - Changes made during Parc Ferme" (in en) (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. https://www.fia.com/sites/default/files/decision-document/2023%20Australian%20Grand%20Prix%20-%20Offence%20-%20Car%2077%20-%20Changes%20made%20during%20Parc%20Ferme.pdf. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "Decision - Car 11 - Failing to set a time within 107%" (in en) (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. https://www.fia.com/sites/default/files/decision-document/2023%20Australian%20Grand%20Prix%20-%20Decision%20-%20Car%2011%20-%20Failing%20to%20set%20a%20time%20within%20107%25.pdf. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 "Decision - Car 11 - Changes made during Parc Ferme" (in en) (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. https://www.fia.com/sites/default/files/decision-document/2023%20Australian%20Grand%20Prix%20-%20Offence%20-%20Car%2011%20-%20Changes%20made%20during%20Parc%20Ferme.pdf. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ 2023 Australian Grand Prix - Final Qualifying Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Australian GP: Max Verstappen holds off Lewis Hamilton for victory after wild finish to chaotic race". 2 April 2023. https://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12433/12847996/australian-gp-max-verstappen-holds-off-lewis-hamilton-for-victory-after-wild-finish-to-chaotic-race. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Kew, Matt (2 April 2023). "Australian GP red-flagged after Albon, Magnussen accidents". https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/australian-gp-red-flagged-after-albon-accident/10452033/. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Kalinauckas, Alex (2 April 2023). "F1 Australian GP: Verstappen wins from Hamilton after late red-flag mayhem". https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/f1-australian-gp-verstappen-wins-from-hamilton-after-late-red-flag-mayhem/10452053/. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ Kew, Matt (2 April 2023). "Gasly avoids F1 race ban as no action taken in Ocon Australian GP clash". https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/gasly-avoids-f1-race-ban-as-no-action-taken-in-ocon-australian-gp-clash/10452321/. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ↑ Cobb, Haydn (2 April 2023). "Sainz blasts "most unfair penalty ever", seeks Australian GP stewards' explanation". https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/sainz-blasts-most-unfair-penalty-ever-seeks-australian-gp-stewards-explanation/10452169/. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ "Haas protest results of 2023 Australian Grand Prix". 2 April 2023. https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.breaking-haas-protest-results-of-2023-australian-grand-prix.2VIj7H2Oe3V3AAPGESJOdd.html. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
- ↑ "Stewards dismiss Haas protest over provisional results of 2023 Australian Grand Prix | Formula 1®" (in en). www.formula1.com. https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.breaking-haas-protest-results-of-2023-australian-grand-prix.2VIj7H2Oe3V3AAPGESJOdd.html.
- ↑ "Australian GP: Controversial red flags analysed after Max Verstappen claims Melbourne victory". 2 April 2023. https://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12433/12848272/australian-gp-controversial-red-flags-analysed-after-max-verstappen-claims-melbourne-victory. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Offence - Car 55 - Causing a collision (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 2023 Australian Grand Prix - Final Race Classification (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 2023 Australian Grand Prix - Championship Points (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
| V T E | Australian Grand Prix
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Circuits | Adelaide Street Circuit (1985–1995) • Albert Park Circuit (1996–present) |  |
| Races | 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 • 2015 • 2016 • 2017 • 2018 • 2019 • |
| v·d·e | Nominate this page for Featured Article |