Australian Grand Prix: Lap by lap

All drivers get away cleanly. Jenson Button up to 15th from grid position of 21st.
Johnny Herbert retires after collision with Sauber.

Lap 3: Mika Hakkinen (McLaren) has a 1.7s lead over team-mate David Coulthard.
Jean Alesi spins and loses time after trying to overtake Sauber's Pedro Diniz.

Lap 5: Michael Schumacher continues in third ahead of Jordan's Heinz-Harald Frentzen.

Lap 6: Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari) behind Frentzen and ahead of Jarno Trulli's (Jordan).
Eddie Irvine (Jaguar) is out after collision with Pedro de la Rosa (Arrows). Both drivers unhurt.

Safety car out.

Lap 8: Safety car remains on track.

Top ten: Hakkinen, Coulthard, M Schumacher, Frentzen, Barrichello, Trulli, Jacques Villeneuve (BAR), Mika Salo (Sauber), Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton) and Ralf Schumacher (Williams).

Jos Verstappen (Arrows) in pits after suffering suspension problems.

Lap 9: Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi) is out. Safety car back in at end of lap. Jenson Button moves up to 13th.

Lap 10: The race gets underway. Hakkinen retains lead. Coulthard in second, ahead of M Schumacher.

Lap 11: David Coulthard is - surprisingly - in pits.

Lap 12: Coulthard rejoins but retires with engine failure. Michael Schumacher in second, 2.6s behind Mika Hakkinen.

M Schumacher records fastest lap (1.32.964s).

Lap 13: Hakkinen has 2.9s lead.

Lap 14: Hakkinen extends lead to 3.4s. Irvine claims he made no contact with de la Rosa.

Top six: Hakkinen, M Schumacher, Frentzen, Barrichello, Trulli and Villeneuve.

Lap 16: M Schumacher sets fastest lap of race (1.32.471s) to eat into the Finn's lead.

Lap 17: The German again closes the gap - to under 3s.
Top six remains unchanged.
Out of the race are: Coulthard, de la Rosa, Irvine and Herbert.

Lap 18: M Schumacher goes faster again to narrow gap to 2.6s.

Mika Hakkinen coasts with engine problem. Schumacher takes lead of the Australian Grand Prix - a race he has never won before.

Lap 19: Schumacher 16.5s ahead of second placed Heinz-Harald Frentzen. McLaren report power problem with Hakkinen's car.

Lap 20: Pedro Diniz (Sauber) pits with broken nose cone and smoking engine. Schumacher extends lead to 17s.

Lap 21: Just 0.61s separate second-placed Heinz-Harald Frentzen and third placed Barrichello.

Lap 23: Schumacher leads by 18.7s. Debutants Jenson Button and Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi) are 11th and 12th respectively.

Lap 24: The Ferrari driver extends lead to more than 20s.

Lap 26: Frentzen remains 0.9s ahead of Barrichello.

Lap 27: Schumacher goes quicker, Frentzen extends gap over Barrichello.
Salo catching Villenueve for fifth place.

Lap 28: M Schumacher sets quickest lap of the race (1.31.752s).

Lap 29: Jean Alesi (Prost) retires from 14th spot.
Ferrari mechanics are out for either Schumacher or Barrichello.

Lap 30: Schumacher comes into pits. Frentzen leads. Schumacher rejoins in third, ahead of Frentzen's team-mate Trulli.

Lap 31: Frentzen leads by 0.7s, ahead of Barrichello.

Lap 32: Salo in pits. Top six: Frentzen, Barrichello, M Schumacher, Trulli, Villeneuve and Fisichella.

Lap 33: Rubens Barrichello comes into pits. Schumacher moves into second. Ralf Schumacher (Williams) moves into sixth. Team-mate Button moves up to 10th.

Lap 34: Top six: Frentzen, M Schumacher, Trulli, Villeneuve, Fisichella and R Schumacher.

Lap 35: Frentzen leads Schumacher by 14.1s.

Jarno Trulli (Jordan) retires from third place with engine problem. Frentzen into pits.

Lap 36: Michael Schumacher regains lead. Jordan struggle with re-fueller.
M Schumacher, Villeneuve, R Schumacher and Button make up top four.

Lap 37: Villeneuve comes into pits.
Schumacher brothers - Michael leading, Ralf second - one-two. . Button in pits.

Lap 38: M Schumacher leads by 11.3s.
R Schumacher pits.

Lap 39: Top six: M Schumacher, Barrichello, R Schumacher, Frentzen, Villeneuve, Fisichella.

Frentzen coasts with engine problems. Button moves up to sixth.

Lap 40: Barrichello closes gap to 10.8s behind M Schumacher. Frentzen retires.

Lap 41: M Schumacher does a lp of 1.35.396s - his slowest lap of race. Barrichello sets fastest lap of race (13.1.481s) and is closing....

Lap 42: Barrichello closes gap to 4.8s.
Button lapping quicker than Fisichella.

Lap 43: Schumacher's lead down to 2.4s

Lap 44: Schumacher ahead of team-mate by 1s.

Top six: M Schumacher, Barrichello, R Schumacher, Villeneuve, Fisichella and Button.

Lap 45: Barrichello takes lead. Apparently the Brazilian has less fuel than Schumacher. Ferrari mechanics await the Brazilian's pit-stop.

Lap 46: Michael Schumacher leads. Jenson Button retires with engine problems.

Lap 47: Top six: M Schumacher, Barrichello, R Schumacher, Villeneuve, Fisichella and Ricardo Zonta (BAR).

Lap 48: Schumacher extends lead.

Lap 50: Schumacher has lead of 24.3s.
Villeneuve, Fisichella, Zonta, Salo and Wurz dicing for fourth.
Salo moves up to sixth.

Lap 51: Schumacher 23.8s consolidates lead ahead of team-mate.

Lap 52:Top six: M Schumacher, Barrichello, R Schumacher, Villeneuve, Fisichella, Salo.

Lap 53: Salo catching Fisichella for fifth place.

Lap 54: Only Marc Gene (Minardi), in ninth, and Nick Heidfeld (Prost) have been lapped.

Lap 55: Schumacher leads by 22.1s with three laps remaining.

Lap 56: Top six: M Schumacher, Barrichello, R Schumacher, Villeneuve, Fisichella and Salo.

Lap 57: Less than a minute separates first (M Schumacher) and eighth (Wurz).

Lap 58: Michael Schumacher wins.