“I felt very comfortable out there,” said Hamilton. “I felt I had a good
understanding of what was going on. I feel quite comfortable in the car, so
overall it’s a positive start, but we need to look at the data now and
understand where we are.”
Vettel finished fourth, completing 41 laps in the second session, a remarkable
turnaround given how far behind Red Bull appeared at the final test less
than two weeks ago in Bahrain. His team-mate also managed to complete the
team’s first full race distance of the year across the two sessions.
“It was very good,” said Vettel of Red Bull’s day. “It is a big relief, a lot
of work went into this. In terms of speed we know there is a lot more to
come but so far it feels very good.”
His 29-year-old rival Hamilton, who has spent the past four years chasing Red
Bull, said he felt “positive” after a topsy-turvy first day.
Hamilton has defended himself this week against claims that he lacks the
mental capacity to win in a formula which requires a more adroit approach,
but his former team-mate Jenson Button believes the 2008 world champion is
well placed to challenge this season.
“He seems like he’s in a good place – he seems happy,” said Button. “Lewis
still picks up things. When we were team-mates he was amazingly quick. But
he would also learn very quickly if he found I was doing something that he
wasn’t.”
Rather than who is at the front, practice gave a much clearer indication of
who is likely to struggle at Albert Park in tomorrow’s race.
Lotus are in a particularly sorry state. Pastor Maldonado limped back to the
pits after an out-lap in which smoke came into the cockpit, and an excursion
into the gravel at relatively slow speed.
Caterham, another Renault team, also suffered an awful day. Both rookie Marcus
Ericsson and Kamui Kobayashi did not complete a timed lap in either session.
Most drivers spent the day focusing on set-up and mastering fuel economy,
which is of crucial importance this year.
Nico Rosberg, tipped as one of the favourites to embrace the new ‘thinking
formula’, was keen to be informed at every opportunity how frugally his
Mercedes was using its fuel.
As ever in Formula One, when a factor in the racing rises in importance, so
too does the politicking which surrounds it. Luca Di Montezemolo, Ferrari’s
president, warned the FIA to be “vigilant” of any “trickery” on the teams’
part.