Hamilton unfazed by gearbox failure

As things stand, the world champion will start 18th on the grid (pending a protest from Williams on the legality of the Red Bull and Ferrari cars) having had to take a five-place penalty for a gearbox change.

"Fourth gear broke, so we couldn't carry on," said Hamilton. "We'll have to change the gearbox, so I'll lose five places and will start from the back of the grid.

"We actually haven't had many problems with reliability, as this was the first one of the weekend! I think we have a good reliability so that shouldn't be a problem."

Hamilton admitted that he didn't have a particular strategy for the race, though the official weight of his car, released by the FIA (see separate story), suggested that he will start the race lighter than many of his rivals.

"I don't have a game plan," he said. "I'll just go for it as it can't get any worse than being last.

"We'll do the best we can and we are a bit quicker than some that are ahead of us, so we'll try to make up as many places as possible."

Asked if he would need to control himself at the beginning of the race, given Melbourne's notoriety for first lap incidents, Hamilton responded: "No, but the race will be a test to that!

"I think I've learned a lot from last year in Fuji, but we'll have more sensible than the others to make sure I finish the race," he added. "Still, we'll have a bit of fun starting from the back of the grid."