Magazine: F1 Australian GP report and review

Can Ferrari fans start to believe? Leclerc’s performance as F1 returned to Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix last weekend was imperious.

Forget the nonsense about ‘Charles 2.0’. It’s been obvious since before Leclerc made it to F1 that he had the potential to be a star. As Alex Kalinauckas shows, it’s merely the circumstances that have changed in 2022, which are allowing Leclerc to deliver.

We’ll be looking at the challenges Ferrari has to face to maintain its momentum in next week’s issue (21 April) but, as our Australian GP report demonstrates this week, Red Bull has some work to do, too. Not only did it go the wrong way with its set-up at Albert Park, but Verstappen has now failed to finish two of the first three races – and is 46 points behind Leclerc.

Two other drivers who impressed last weekend were Mitch Evans and Josef Newgarden. Jake Boxall-Legge was in Rome to witness a rare Formula E feat as Jaguar’s Evans won both races in fine style, while David Malsher-Lopez explains how Penske’s Newgarden overcame the apparently invincible Colton Herta and ex-F1 racer Romain Grosjean to win on the streets of Long Beach.

Marcus Pye was at Goodwood to pick out the highlights from the 79th Members’ Meeting, but the serious Frazer Nash accident that delayed the event was another reminder that motorsport must not get complacent on safety, at any level.

We wish Paul Waine a speedy recovery and his accident leads our National section, which covers all the club racing from around the UK. We also look ahead to the British GT and GB3 seasons, which kick off at Oulton Park this weekend.

Finally, in the latest of our My Favourite series, two-time Indycar champion Al Unser Jr picks out his best team-mate – and it’s another American motorsport legend.

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