The 2020 F1 Australian Grand Prix from Bathurst

15th March 2020, Bathurst, Australia

In seventy years of Formula One racing the feeling of foreboding has never been so prevalent as it was for the first round of the 2020 World Championship, at the famous Mount Panorama Circuit near Bathurst, Australia.

The FIA were heavily criticised as tinfoil hat wearing doom mongers when at the outbreak of the Coronavirus back in January they had the foresight to implement drastic measures to insure the sport kept on track on its journey around the globe visiting 21 countries on five continents. So far all 21 races are scheduled to take place with some adjustments to the calendar. A major achievement while every other global and national sport cancels and postpones events.

All rounds this year are at closed circuits without a single race fan in attendance and all tickets refunded. Bad news for struggling circuits income but to help that situation the FIA have cut the fees circuits pay to host F1 down to zero.

Coronavirus has provided a massive logistical problem for the Formula One circus with increasingly strict quarantine laws coming into force on boarder crossings. To get around quarantine restrictions the Formula 1 circus has become honoured guests aboard the US Navy's aircraft carrier USS George Washington! All twenty cars, their drivers and key team members are aboard the ship and under strict quarantine orders. They can only disembark the ship via airlift direct to the circuit, where they must remain until transported back! It's going to be a long year for many drivers and crew who will be living in close quarters and away from their families until the corona crises is solved.

Practice sessions since the pre season test at Barcelona have been greatly reduced in these strange times. Thursday and Friday testing on race weekends are cancelled, replaced with a two hour qualifying session on Saturday afternoon which doubles as a practice.

Qualifying: Mercedes 1-2 closely followed by impressive Racing Point.

Mercedes start the season with another 1-2 and remain the team to beat. Lewis had to fight for pole position with his team mate, Valtteri, who looks determined to seize the day. The impressive Racing Point, inspired by Mercedes and powered by Mercedes, qualify third and fifth. Fears that Ferrari have a substandard car, by their highest standards, seems to be proven correct. Sixth and eighth were the best Ferrari could get despite the noble efforts of their drivers to get round the Mount Panorama circuit with all four wheels still attached.

In the midfield McLaren and Renault are expecting a fierce battle with AlphaTauri, who scored two podiums last year as Toro Rosso. McLaren qualified ninth and tenth and look to lead this battle, with Alfa Romeo close to Renault. Daniel will be disappointed with the lack of progress Renault have made but we should see some of these midfielders on the podium in this close season.

The grid is noticeably closer this year as the ten teams make the most from the unchanged rulebook, in this fictional world of Formula One! Down the field Williams are clearly finding pace they severely lacked last year to fight for the lower point positions. They move one car up from the last row. George had to drive the wheels off to get 17th but the team progresses in the right direction whereas Haas, known to be strong starters, have joined them as also-rans. Despite the poor fortunes of Haas and Williams they are under three seconds slower than Mercedes in qualifying!

Pole Lewis Mercedes

2. Valtteri Mercedes

3. Sergio Racing Point

4. Max Red-Bull

5. Lance Racing Point

6. Seb Ferrari

7. Alex Red-Bull

8. Charles Ferrari

9. Carlos McLaren

10. Lando McLaren

11. Daniel Renualt

12. Kimi Alfa Romeo

13. Danil Alpha Tauri

14. Pierre Alfa Tauri

15. Seb Renault

16. Antonio Alfa Romeo

17. George Williams

18. Romain Haas

19. Kevin Haas

20. Nicolas Williams

Rulebook for 2020

This is a breakdown of the 2020 rules,

• Each team uses identical spec 3-litre V 10 engines which redline at 30,000rpm, a design dating back to the late 1990s and developed every year since. Rather than last multiple races the engines are tuned to last for one race weekend.

• The hybrid systems are developed by renowned manufacturers Mercedes, Ferrari, Honda and Renault. Kinetic energy from the brakes is stored to give the driver NOS style boosts of about 50 bhp.

• Attack mode, inspired by Formula E, gives the driver another 50bhp boost for 5 minutes using a highly tuned engine map by running over the activation zone. The activation zone is on the Conrod Straight after Forrest's Elbow and can be used twice in each race.

• DRS opens the front and rear wings and is available from the green light whenever the driver wishes to use it.

• Pitstops have a minimum required time of 5 seconds to encourage action on track rather than the pitlane.

Jenson setting the lap record in 2011.

Race start 12:00

In two hours of racing we should have 67 laps. If they equal Jenson Button's lap record from 2011 driving for McLaren. The two hour timer doesn't pause for red flags or visits from the pace car.

Mount Panorama is eierely silent of human activity. Until the field of twenty Formula One V10s burst into their deafening crescendo on the grid. The national anthem plays on the tannoy rather than risk bring an outsider into the Formula circus to sing for an audience of twenty. There's not a single celebrity on the grid other than the drivers. The only human traffic to be seen within the restricted zone of Mount Panorama are cameramen and medics, all of which travel to the track with the teams and drivers from the USS George Washington. Journalists were deemed surplus to requirements. Even the commentators are working from home!

The sound of the V10s seems to shake the ground in defiance. The one global sport which found a way to beat the pandemic. Through the twisting Mount Panorama the roar reverberates of the walls and trees.

Lap 1

A great start for Valtteri from second who takes the lead into Griffins Bend pushing out his team mate. A fighting start for Valtteri and Sergio follows him through leaving Lewis in third. A poor start for the world champion. There's a cautious first tour of the mountain where overtaking opportunities are minimal and a small mistake can have dire consequences. The walls are close and brutal here in the mountain. Some in the midfield take attack mode early to gain on their rivals.

Lap 3

A spectacular wreck on Conrod Straight. Seb with attack mode took Alex's Red Bull through the dangerous Skyline section with a shoulder barge leaving Alex in the gravel. Luckily Alex continues. Seb then gets into Max's slipstream on the long Conrod Straight heading away from the mountain and drags himself closer towards The Chase. Seb out brakes himself and spears Max's Red Bull with his Ferrari. Seb's suspension is broken on impact then he slides helplessly deep into the gravel pit. The three remaining wheels on his Ferrari buried up to the hubs. Poor Max was sent into a vicious spin from the punt with parts of his rear wing flaying off in all directions. A terrible start for Seb who was in need of an upturn in form. Retirement for Seb and Max!

Last of the late brakers. Seb and Max retire.

Lap 5

Some drivers will be familiar with the Marshalls this season. The safety car is out as the wrecks of the Red Bull and Ferrari are craned away. There is surely going to be a shortage of parts this season as the whole grid is based at sea. So incidents like this will be even less appreciated by Ferrari and Red Bull.

Lap 7

The clock continues to tick away two hours as the Mercedes pace car leads the pack around Bathhurst. The pace car is Lewis' 2019 championship winning Mercedes. Every season the championship car from last season becomes the pace car. Detuned for reliability it's painted in bright yellow and has a flashing warning light on the roll hoop. Using a Formula 1 car as a pace car leads to safer restarts as the cars can be lead at relatively high speeds which keeps heat in the tyres and brakes.

Lap 9

The track is clear and the race will restart next time around. This is the top ten; 1) Valtteri, 2) Sergio, 3) Lewis, 4) Lance, 5) Charles, 6) Alex, 7) Daniel, 8) Carlos, 9) Lando, 10) Esteban.

Lap 11

Green flag and the pace car pulls into the pits. Sergio in his Racing Point takes the lead from Valtteri into Griffins Bend after slipstreaming with DRS up mountain straight. Lewis holds off Lance and behind them the Renaults have a great restart, moving up to ninth and tenth.

Lap 13

Sergio is driving the wheels off his Racing Point to keep the Mercedes behind. He has a few minutes of attack mode boost left. George is impressive at the other end of the field in his Williams. He's able to attack the AlphaTauri of Pierre in the mountain in his improved but still off pace Williams. On the long straights he can keep the struggling Haas' behind.

Lap 15

Valtteri activates attack mode just as Sergio's runs out. He pulls back into the Racing Point's slipstream. Lewis is yet to use attack mode. Another safety car is likely at Bathurst so there's plenty of opportunities to use it later.

Lap 18

There are fierce battles in Mount Panorama as the Haas cars collide, sending Kevin into the gravel and out of the race with suspension damage. Romain got a puncture in the melee and makes it back to the pits in last place.

Lap 21

Valtteri retakes the lead from Sergio on the Conrad Straight. He's trying to pull a gap while he has attack mode and sets the fastest lap. A new lap record beating Jenson's record from 2011.

Lap 22

The pace car is out for the second time as Daniel and Esteban collide. Esteban got into the side of Daniel, his Renault teammate, in a bold overtake move, painting a black circle on the yellow Renault. Daniel was having none of it and repaid his teammate with a signature late lunge at Forrest's Elbow onto the Conrad Straight, forcing him wide then barging him with a second touch into the wall, with a solid shove in the side. Half of Esteban's Renault is spread down the wall in a black and yellow streak. Daniel has black rubber circles painted on both sides of his car and holds ninth.

Lap 24

Daniel is sure to be penalised for that move which sent his teammate into the wall, the mess of which the marshalls are craning away and brushing from the tarmac. The penalty will be added to the ballast for qualifying in round two in Malaysia. Esteban might get a lighter penalty for the clumsy move that started it all!

Lap 25

We are close to half distance and some drivers chance a pitstop for fresh tyres and fuel. These Pirelli tyres are capable of completing a full two hour race. Pit stops aren't mandatory but these durable race tyres still wear and lose pace over time. Pit stops have a five second minimum time to minimise the effect of pit strategy. Neither is there multiple compounds of rubber. This keeps the action on track and Daniel stays out there with his battle scars. He moves up to sixth as Lance, Alex and Carlos pit ahead of him.

Lap 26

George stays out of the pits and moves up to eleventh place under the safety car. A strong performance from the Willams driver.

Lap 27

Ferrari seem off the pace, as they feared in pre season testing in Barcelona before the COVD-19 problem became apparent. Despite the Ferraris lack of downforce Charles is up to fourth and holding position. Off pace for Ferrari is second place and they are clearly behind Mercedes and the Mercedes inspired Racing Point.

Lap 28

The pace car is in this lap with half the race distance ran.

Lap 29

Lewis is past Sergio who wisely doesn't put up too much fight, given his teams support from Mercedes. Lewis activates attack mode and chases after Valtteri.

Lap 31

Daniel is moving up fast in his battle damaged Renault. It could be the most beautiful car in the pack, reminiscent of the 1990 Ferrari 641. From the rounded nose at least. Daniel takes Lando on the Conrod Straight for fifth.

Renault's styling inspiration? Ferrari 641

Lap 33

Only Mercedes are faster than Daniel at them moment as Lewis closes in on his teammate.

Lap 36

Valtteri is defending hard against Lewis and both Mercedes drivers take attack mode. After three years in Lewis' shadow is Valtteri trying to seize control?

Lap 38

George moves up to tenth with an overtake on Kimi slipstreaming up the Mountain Straight. Kimi then retakes tenth on the way back down. With two long straights at Bathurst and DRS available at all times there's a lot of action in the midfield. A lot of slipstreaming on the two long straights. But our attention is on the battle for victory.

Lap 41

Lewis is past Valtteri into the mountain after a slipstream down the front straight. It took some force. If Vallterri hadn't moved over there would've been contact and wing damage. Valtteri is on the back of Lewis under his rear wing through the mountain. Thirty minutes remain.

Lap 42

Daniel takes Charles, who seems to be struggling for traction in the mountain in his Ferrari. Daniel is up to fourth at his home Grand Prix. This could be his first podium in Australia and long overdue.

Lap 45

Valtteri has been on the tail of Lewis relentlessly since he lost the lead, despite the protestations of the Mercedes team. He makes his move into Griffins Bend moving out of Lewis' slipstream and brakes late. Lewis squeezes him towards the concrete wall but Valtteri accelerates into the side of his teammate, giving him a push on the throttle against the barge board with his front wheel. A gap opens as Lewis counter steers onto the gravel and marbles offline with a dent in his side hidden by a streak of black rubber from Valtteri's wheels. Valtteri is back in the lead and pulls a gap in the mountain.

Lap 46

Lewis is furious on the radio. It's been four years since he was challenged from within and the Ferrari challenge since has fallen flat every year. Mercedes aren't too happy with Valtteri either!

Lap 49

Without anymore pace car interruptions we will get to the two hour mark and the chequered flag on lap 58. Lewis has some damage from the move by Valtteri, who has pulled out a five second gap and is holding there. Great maturity from Valtteri to save his tired Mercedes in the safety of first place, although he might have a penalty for that move on Lewis.

Lap 50

Lewis is falling back albeit he's still holding second place. He's complaining of overheating. Possible radiator damage. Sergio and Daniel are gaining on him as Perez sets his personal best, a mere tenth off Lewis' best, and Daniel sets the fastest lap of the race.

Lap 51

Sergio and Daniel are a few seconds behind Lewis now. Further back there's contact between Charles and Lando. Lando tries an overtake into turn one but finds the gap slams shut quickly. The wing of his McLaren is shredded against the side of Charles' Ferrari and he has to pit. He was on for some good points in sixth place. Charles continues. The Formula 1 cars of today can take some rough treatment, but only so much.

Lap 52

George is now up to tenth with a great drive in the struggling Williams car. He's being the match of Kimi who moves up to ninth after Lando's pit stop for a new nose.

Lap 54

At the front this race is in Valtteri's hands, although his team and Lewis may feel he has some explaining to do. Valtteri might surely disagree. Seems like he wants a shot at the title this year rather than play wingman to Lewis. Sergio and Daniel are closing in fast on Lewis.

Lap 55

Sergio tactically moves over to allow Daniel past to launch an on attack Lewis. The Racing Point machine of Sergio shares a lot of tech with the Mercedes of Lewis, so to have a crash in the late stages of this race would be foolish. Better to let Daniel, full of fire at his home Grand Prix, attack Lewis and hopefully wreck into him. Then take second place from the wreckage!

Lap 56

Daniel takes Lewis on the back straight for second place. This could be Daniel's first podium in Australia and his first for Renault. Both cars have their battle scars although the sole remaining Renault is running perfectly.

Lap 57

The pink Racing Point of Sergio has not a single mark from two hours of racing other than dead bugs and a black sheen of rubber and oil. A lap after Dan, Sergio gets under the wing of Lewis' Mercedes through the mountain and slipstreams the Mercedes down the Conrod Straight. Lewis is nursing his Mercedes to the end as Sergio moves into third onto the final lap.

Lap 58 The Final Lap

Valtteri wins the Australian Grand Prix for the second year in succession. In front of millions of fans watching at home around the world but Bathurst is eerily quiet. We can hear his screams over the ambient drone of Australian countryside and V10s as he punches the air. We can even here the marshals applaud on the victory lap. Mercedes celebrate, Valtteri's half with a bit more enfusiasm than Lewis'. Across the line in second is Daniel, his first podium at his home Grand Prix. There's celebrations from Renault in second place with their first podium since buying the Lotus team. Racing Point claim their first podium in third place with their Mercedes inspired machine. Their first podium since Baku when they were named Force India. Lewis takes the flag in fourth to applause from his Mercedes crew as he pulls over to the side after the line. Down in tenth Williams and George celebrate their own victory against the odds. George's first point took a year to come despite his obvious talent. As Mercedes' reserve driver his results are sure to improve.

Podium

The podium rituals are cut down in these uncertain times with the threat of COVID-19 starting to spread outside of China. Some of the few cameramen and officials have started wearing surgical masks. Navy helicopters are already standing by to transport the drivers back to the USS George Washington after the podium. Valtteri stands on the top step for his hard won first place trophy. A golden replica of David Brabham's steering wheel. There's not a fan in sight as Daniel leaps onto the second step. Every mechanic and engineer in the pit lane cheers on behalf of the fans. And in third is Sergio for Racing Point who receives a cheer just as loud.

There isn't much social distancing in the pit lane as the teams listen to the Finnish and German anthems for Valtteri and Mercedes. Three huge bottles of Moet are presented to the drivers and they celebrate in the traditional manner, downing a stinking boot full of Moet from Daniel and his 'shoey'. The three heroes are a bit unsure about what happens next, expecting an interview, and are shepherded away to the waiting helicopters. It's a long 200km flight from Bathurst to the ship in Sydney Harbour. The crews and cars will leave a few hours later, then lastly the security crew. All back to season long quarantine on the war ship from as the quarantine of Bathurst ends.

Round two was due to be at Sakhir in Bahrain on 22nd March but this has been postponed due to the logistical challenge of attempting to host the whole championship from a quarantined warship. They can't get around the world at the speed they once could. The USS George Washington now sails north to Malaysia to provide air drops of drivers and race cars for the quarantined Sepang circuit and round 2 of the 2020 Formula 1 Championship on 12 April.

Standings after round 1

1. Valtteri (Mercedes) 25

2. Daniel (Renault) 19

3. Sergio (Racing Point) 15

4. Lewis (Mercedes) 13

5. Charles (Ferrari) 10

6. Lance (Racing Point) 8

7. Alex (Red Bull) 6

8. Carlos (McLaren) 4

9. Kimi (Alfa Romeo) 2

10. George (Williams) 1

* Lewis got 1 point for pole position

* Daniel got 1 point for fastest lap

Constructors

1. Mercedes 38

2. Racing Point 23

3. Renault 19

4. Ferrari 10

5. Red Bull 6

6. McLaren 4

7. Alfa Romeo 2

8. Williams 1