Australian Grand Prix 2015 Preview: Start Time, TV Info, Weather, Schedule, Odds
Formula One returns on March 13 with first practice for the 2015 Australian Grand Prix. For most fans it will be the first look at the new cars in action, and Sunday's race promises to answer many of our questions from winter testing.
The venue will be the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in Albert Park, host to the Australian round since 1996. The traditional season-opener isn't always a perfect indicator of how the year ahead will unfold, but all the teams will still be hoping for the best possible start.
Jenson Button goes into the weekend as the current driver with the most Australian victories, having won in 2009, 2010 and 2012. The only other multiple winner on the grid is Kimi Raikkonen, who won in 2007 and 2013.
Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso have one win apiece. The Mercedes duo look to have the best chance of adding to their tally, but there are no guarantees.
Read on for a full preview of the race weekend including TV times, a circuit map and guide, tyre and DRS information, weather forecast, odds and session times.
Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit
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The Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, more commonly referred to as Albert Park, is located close to the centre of Melbourne. Semi-permanent and very flat, it lacks the hallmarks of a classic circuit but is very much on the unforgiving end of the scale.
The parkland setting prevents the use of huge expanses of tarmac run-off—mistakes usually result in a trip across the grass or contact with the wall. Turns 5 and 10 are especially unforgiving in this regard, as Valtteri Bottas discovered last season.
While not a Silverstone or Spa, Albert Park is a perfect place to start the season.
Turns 1 and 2
A lap begins on the pit straight. The run down to the first corner is of a moderate length and usually allows for some overtaking and dicing for position off the grid—often with unfortunate consequences.
Don't be surprised if at least one car is taken out of the race here on the opening lap.
The corner itself, Turn 1, is a deceptively quick right-hander. It's not uncommon to see drivers overcook it slightly into here and take a trip across the grass on the outside. Turn 2, a quicker, more open left, follows immediately and leads out onto a medium-length straight.
Turns 3, 4 and 5
At the end of the straight, the drivers brake hard for Turn 3, a tight and tricky right-hander. Overtaking into this corner is possible, especially if the defending car got out of shape through the first two turns.
The track is narrow here and, like Turn 1, this can be a bit of a flashpoint on the opening lap. Martin Brundle's famous 1996 crash (seen at 0:28 in this video) happened here, but we're more likely to see simple position changes than we are spectacular accidents.
After a quick squirt of the throttle it's the medium-speed left of Turn 4. The drivers then sweep across to the other side of the track and through the quick right-hand Turn 5. The wall is very close on the outside here, and any error can prove disastrous.
Turns 6, 7 and 8
Coming out of Turn 5, the cars navigate a short, winding straight before braking for the right-hander of Turn 6. It's tight, but the drivers need to carry as much speed as possible through the exit into the more open left of Turn 7.
Turn 8 is a long, fast right-hander which follows immediately, leading out onto a short straight.
Turns 9 and 10
At the end of the straight, the drivers brake for the right-left chicane of Turns 9 and 10. This is also a possible overtaking spot, but isn't likely to get much use after the opening lap.
The first part, a right-hander, is quite tight and slow and another corner which sees the occasional error over the course of the weekend. As soon as the cars clear the apex they straighten up and enter Turn 10, a quicker, open left.
With a solid wall on the outside, there's no margin for error as the drivers enter the curving first part of the back straight.
Turns 11 and 12
After hitting speeds of close to 300 kilometres per hour, the drivers give the brake pedal a little tap before aiming the car for the tiny piece of kerbing which marks out the apex of Turn 11.
This fast left-hander is the first part of a challenging chicane which is probably the best corner pair Albert Park has to offer.
Once through, they balance the car and fly over the kerb of Turn 12. A good exit here is important as it leads onto the second half of the back straight; a bad exit or running wide can leave a car open to attack from behind.
Turns 13 and 14
The track curves gently to the right, straightening up before the braking zone for the fairly slow, 90-degree right of Turn 13. Another potential overtaking spot, this one doesn't usually see action unless someone did very badly in the quick chicane.
A very short straight is next before the medium-fast right of Turn 14. This is followed by another tiny straight.
Turns 15 and 16
As the end of the lap approaches, the drivers brake for the tight left-hander of Turn 15. The slowest corner on the circuit, it's yet another place we often see mistakes—especially during free practice.
The cars then sweep quickly over to the left-hand side of the track for the final corner, a medium-speed right. Getting the power down early at the exit, the drivers head toward the start-finish line and the start of another lap.
Pit Lane
The pit lane entry is on the inside of Turn 16, with the exit on the pit straight between the start-finish line and Turn 1.
Tyres and DRS
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The Albert Park circuit is semi-permanent, so starts the weekend "dirty" after a year of use by the general public. The more the F1 cars run, the more they clean it up and lay down useful rubber. This allows for better grip and improved lap times.
It's a rear-limited circuit—Pirelli's race preview states the left-rear works the hardest, so wear on this tyre may determine strategy.
The tyre supplier is bringing the yellow-marked soft and white-marked medium compound tyres for the Australian Grand Prix. This is the same combination used for 2014's race.
The estimated performance gap between the two compounds is estimated to be in the region of 1.2-1.5 seconds per lap, so all the teams bar Mercedes may need to run the soft tyre in the first part of qualifying.
A two-stop strategy is likely to be the preferred approach for the front-runners.
DRS
There will be two DRS zones in Melbourne. They will run from a single detection point just before the entry to Turn 14.
The first zone's activation point is immediately after the exit of the final corner. The zone runs the length of the pit straight, ending with braking into Turn 1.
The second zone has its activation point shortly after the exit of Turn 2 and ends with braking for Turn 3. Drivers will get DRS in this second zone even if they completed a pass in the first.
Weather
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Melbourne has an oceanic climate, with warm and sometimes hot summers and usually mild winters. Mid-March is toward the end of the city's summer, with average temperatures of around 24 degrees Celsius. Rainfall occurs on an average of six days in the month.
The Australian Grand Prix weather looks like being normal for the time of year. Friday will be a touch cooler, but Saturday and Sunday will both see highs of around 23 degrees Celsius. There will be cloud cover on all days, with more chance of some brightness on Sunday.
But the official Australian tourism website says Melbourne is known for having "four seasons in one day"—so there's a chance this could change.
BBC Weather will have the latest as we get closer to the weekend.
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Odds
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Lewis Hamilton is favourite, a position he has occupied for every race since the start of 2014. Unsurprisingly, team-mate Nico Rosberg is second-favourite and everyone else is a long way behind.
The Top 10 favourites are:
| Lewis Hamilton | 11-10 |
| Nico Rosberg | 9-4 |
| Sebastian Vettel | 14-1 |
| Valtteri Bottas | 14-1 |
| Daniel Ricciardo | 18-1 |
| Kimi Raikkonen | 20-1 |
| Felipe Massa | 25-1 |
| Daniil Kvyat | 80-1 |
| Jenson Button | 100-1 |
Selected Others
Manor are unlikely to score points this weekend, but they are at least favourites for something. Rookie duo Roberto Merhi (8-1) and Will Stevens (11-1) are considered most likely to be the first retirement.
The other three rookies could be in the points. Of them, 5-2 Felipe Nasr is favourite to score points on his debut, with Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz Jr. at 3-1.
And the bookies seem reluctant to write off McLaren. Despite not managing a race distance in testing, Jenson Button and Kevin Magnussen are both evens to score points.
All odds sourced from Oddschecker.com and correct at the time of publication.
TV Times and Session Times
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As always, the Australia Grand Prix weekend will consist of three free practice sessions, qualifying and the race.
The session times are as follows:
| Practice One | Friday | 12.30 p.m. |
| Practice Two | Friday | 4:30 p.m. |
| Practice Three | Saturday | 2 p.m. |
| Qualifying | Saturday | 5 p.m. |
| Race | Sunday | 4 p.m. |
All times given are Melbourne local time (EADT, UTC +11). Formula1.com used to have a very useful tool to convert them to your own time zone, but it appears to have vanished. Timeanddate.com has a slightly more cumbersome but still accurate conversion tool.
TV Times
In the United Kingdom, live coverage of all sessions will be provided by Sky Sports F1. Their programming times are as follows (all times GMT):
| Practice One | Friday | 1:30 a.m. | 1 a.m. |
| Practice Two | Friday | 5:30 a.m. | 5:15 a.m. |
| Practice Three | Saturday | 3 a.m. | 2:45 a.m. |
| Qualifying | Saturday | 6 a.m. | 5 a.m. |
| Race | Sunday | 5 a.m. | 3:30 a.m. |
The BBC will provide free-to-air highlights (times here).
In the United States, live coverage of the event is provided by the NBC network. Live coverage of second practice is at 1:30 a.m. on Friday morning. Live qualifying is on Saturday at 2 a.m., with live race coverage starting at 12:30 a.m. on Sunday. All are on NBCSN.
NBC Live Sports Extra will show the other two practice sessions. All U.S. times given are Eastern.
Enjoy the weekend!
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