The Formula One Rolex Grand Prix was held on 15th March 2015 and was contested over 58 laps of Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, Australia. It began under perfect conditions with clear blue skies but without Fernando Alonso. McLaren had announced that Alonso had a temporary memory loss following his crash at the pre-season testing in Barcelona.
It will be tough not to be in Australia, but I understand the recommendations. A second impact in less than 21 days "NO"#countdownMalaysia
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) March 3, 2015
The season started with a carryover of almost all the regulations but in actual fact, everything seemed changed after the race finished. Mercedes had become even faster. RedBull turned out to be worse than before whereas Ferrari and Williams appeared in a better state. Before the commencement of the race, there were 15 cars on the circuit but only 11 managed to finish the Australian Grand Prix last season.
Numbers:
Pole position time: 1:26,327 Lewis Hamilton
Fastest lap: 1:30,945 ; Lewis Hamilton in lap 51 from 58
Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg provided Mercedes with another 1-2 finish which looked like a routine as any of the 11 such results that they made in 2014.
Great job today, team! #TeamLH #BestTeam #MercedesAMG pic.twitter.com/GgBiuw8anX
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) March 15, 2015
Following them, Sebastian Vettel crossed the chequered flag and finished 3rd for Ferrari. The four-time World Champion, Vettel said – “It would be nice to stay in front of as many people as we can. I’m sure that Mercedes is out of reach, you have to be realistic, but the most important thing is we ran and didn’t have any problems.”
Vettel was followed by the Williams’ sole starter Felipe Massa taking fourth ahead of fellow Brazilian rookie Felipe Nasr. Hamilton had just little to say about his tactics as he ran ahead of his teammate Rosberg in the battle – “It’s an incredible feeling to carry on from last year. Once you get a two-second gap you try to manage that.”
Meanwhile in the Constructors standings, the Silver Arrows already had an imposing lead: they stood on 43 points, with Ferrari and Sauber next up on 15 and 14 respectively.