Mercedes upgrades on the way?

Mercedes was expected to introduce its first s🅰ignificant upgrade of the season for F1’s return to Melbourne with the arrival of an all-new rear wing to reduce drag and ꦰpotentially a newly-designed floor, though it appears to still have the same rear wing it had in Jeddah. 

The update, which may not 𓂃arrive until Imola or Miami, are aimಞed at combating its porpoising issues. The phenomenon has been at the heart of the W13’s problems so far in 2022, forcing Mercedes to run a compromised setup in a bid to reduce the bouncing effect.

As a result, drivers George Russell and Lewis Ham💎ilton had contrasting fortunes at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix last time out as they dealt with anඣ ill-handling car.

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The seven-time champion was knocked out iꦅn Q1 for the first♔ time since 2017, while Russell qualified sixth albeit behind Alpine’s Esteban Ocon. They went on to finish fifth and 10th respectively in the race. 

With Albert Park’s signific꧅ant changes for this w🐎eekend, the circuit is likely to reward low drag and high speed - something Mercedes has lacked in the opening two grands prix of the year.

Speaking ahead of the weekend, Me♛rcedes boss Toto Wolff said: "At the moment, our track performance is not meeting our own expectations, but everyone at Brackley and Brixworth is focused on understanding the problems and finding the right solutions.

"There won't be a magic fix for the next race weekend, but we're pushing to steadily bring gains over the upcoming races, to hopefully move us🧸 closer to the front of the pack.

"Until then, we need to maximise each opportꦑunity and make the most of the package we have."

Leclerc v Verstappen - Part 3?

The biggest 🐎talking point so far this season is Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen’s early duels.

Leclerc and Verstappen have one victory apiece as t🤡hey went head-to-head on ꦫtrack in both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

After F1 enjoyed one of its greatest-ever title battles last season, Leclerc versus Verst▨appen could end up eclipsing that if the pair continue to battle aggressively on track but also continue to show each other respect.

Ferrari and Red Bull have been the class o𝕴f the field so far but both cars have their respective strengths. 

Ferrari has been superior in the corners, particularly at low speed and keeping a good car balance while Red Bull maintains the adva🐈ntage on the straig♒hts.

How these variables will play out this weekend will be interesting given that Albert Park is considerably different to how it was last timꦺe F1 raced in Melbourne back in 2019.

Vettel’s return 

After missing the opening tw𒁏o races of the season due to coronavirus, 𒈔Sebastian Vettel makes his return this weekend.

Vettel is the most successful driver at the Austral༒ian Grand Prix, winning on three previous occasions (2011, 2017 and 2018) but his impressive historical record is unlikely to be able to savಌe Aston Martin from its terrible start to the 2022 season. 

In Vettel’s absence, Lance Stroll and Nico Hulkenberg could only muster one Q2 appearance and never looked like fighting for the top 10 on merit with Aston Martin trailing Haas, Alfa Romeo, AlphaTauri and McLaren in Saudi Arabia.&⭕nbsp;

The four-time world champion will﷽ give Aston Martin a welcome boost but given he’s been out of the car for nearly a month and the lingering effects of covid still likely, it might take Vettel some time to get back to his very best.

Ricciardo’s homecoming

Daniel Ricciardo 🍨will race 𝓡in front of his home crowd for the first time since 2019.

The Australian finalꦇly returned home after the conclusion of last season following a couple of years away due to the various travel restrictions linked to the pandemic. 

Unfort🍰unately for Ricciardo, success on home soil looks to be a distant😼 dream given McLaren’s early struggles this season. 

The Woking outfit ran most of the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix at the back of the ওgrid with l🍸ow-speed corners and heavy braking zones at the forefront of McLaren’s problems in 2022.

The team fared better in Saudi Arabia, although it relied on the retirements of Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas to propel Lando Norris൲ into the top seven.

Australia’s new layout is high-speed and lacks too many heavy braking zones which should mak🧜e McLaren more competitive than it was in Bahrain.

However, a b൩ig result for Ricciardo at his home event is a distant dream.

Four DRS zones and a drastically new track

For the first time in F1’s history, there will be four DRS ꦑactivation zones for this weekend’s Australian GP. 

On paper, it looks like F1 has gone one step too far but given 🦩that t🧸here are just two detection points it should mean drivers won’t be too fearful like they were in Saudi Arabia to complete overtakes. 

Besides the four DRS zones, organisers have reva𝕴mped Albert Park completely with Turns 1, 3, 6, 11 and the penultimate corner all widened.

The old Turn 9 and 10 corners have been removed and replaced with a 1.3km flat-out section that🐻 will host the♛ new DRS zone.

The changes look promising with wider cornꦕers and higher top speedꦕs - in theory - allowing for better racing.

Albert Park has often been one of thౠe dullest races on the calendar with very few overtakes.

With new cars and a h𒅌eavily-modified circuit, maybe 2022 will be the year Aus🐼tralia’s fans get to enjoy a breathtaking grand prix.