The 29-year-old therefore sounded a note of cautious optimism last night as
the teams packed up for almost two weeks of relentless activity before the
first race.
“It’s a work in progress,” said Hamilton who ended the final day with the
fastest lap. “Overall, it’s been a fantastic winter. I’m pretty sure there
are not too many people that are ready, but I feel as ready as we can be.
It’s definitely been the weirdest and the most difficult pre-season testing
to read.”
New rules, new engines, and a new soundtrack have all combined to make for one
of the most intriguing pre-seasons in years. But the level of interest has
been multiplied dramatically by Red Bull’s travails.
“There’s no point being too emotional about it,” four-time champion Sebastian
Vettel said this weekend. The last emotion we heard from the 26-year-old was
over his team radio in Austin last year as he urged his team to cherish
their dominant run, which rings even more true now given their current
predicament.
Vettel has not failed to take the chequered flag first since Hungary last
July, but the chances of him extending his winning run to 10 races in less
than two weeks look to be almost nil.
The German’s running was hampered again yesterday, with what appeared to be a
brake failure after 44 laps in the morning.
After a dismal first four days in southern Spain, Red Bull expected to be
further along than they are, but they finished testing without completing a
full race simulation. Mercedes managed one in the first week.
The double champions of the last four years have suffered, but their troubles
have not been helped by their engine supplier, Renault.
Fellow Renault team Lotus are also struggling, after a strong 2013. Asked
yesterday what this week suggests about where they can finish in Melbourne,
French driver Romain Grosjean cryptically replied: “Optimism?”
Testing confirmed that Formula One is most definitely an engine formula once
more, and Renault are weeks if not months behind Mercedes and Ferrari in
their development, which could leave the grid worryingly spread out come
Australia.
Jenson Button, who experienced a promising if unspectacular pre-season in his
McLaren, has allayed such fears. “The grid will be much tighter in Melbourne
than expected – which is a good thing after the mess of the first test with
eight seconds between the cars.”
Coming off the back of their worst season since 1980, McLaren have built a
strong but conservative car, and have work to do to catch up on ultimate
pace.
One team who made the apparently inspired switch from Renault to Mercedes
power is Williams, who are reaping the rewards after a dismal 2013. Along
with Force India they were regularly near the top of the timesheets in
testing, and should figure prominently in Australia.
The hardest team to read has been Ferrari. Thought to be slightly down on
power and fuel efficiency compared with Mercedes, Fernando Alonso has given
mixed signals about their progress. If the car is half-decent in Australia,
the Spaniard will surely drag it into contention.
Despite all the mileage, and the breakdowns, we will have to wait until
Australia to find out how frugal each team is with its limited supply of
fuel; the name of the game in 2014.
So, who will be in the mix in Melbourne?
Mercedes: They were first out in Jerez, and have impressed all winter.
In Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg they have one of the best driver pairings
on the grid, and are favourites for pole and the race win.
Williams: Williams have undoubtedly been the surprise package of
pre-season. They went nearly 12 days of testing without causing a red flag,
until Valtteri Bottas stopped with 30 minutes remaining.
McLaren: Jenson Button has admitted they are down on one-lap pace, but
their innovative suspension caught everyone’s eye in Jerez, and they should
be in the hunt.
Force India: They were hampered early with some reliability issues, but
impressed with their long run pace. They also have the highly-rated Nico
Hulkenberg back in their ranks.
Ferrari: Whether Mercedes power remains too strong for everyone else
remains to be seen, but Ferrari are likely to be best of the rest if that’s
the case.