The first day of free practice in Melbourne left very little information for teams and drivers, causes the malfunction of the GPS with consequent traffic problems, and rain, which arrived in the FP2 – which made any assessment of the race pace and flying lap useless. The daredevils who mounted the slicks sadly returned to the pits given the too high risk. As there were no other sessions with these forecasts – race and qualifying, barring unforeseen events, are played in the dry – many felt it was useless to ride. Therefore, even the timing of this session should be taken with a grain of salt. Different speech for the FP1, the most linear session at the moment, as well as the only one we can actually take into consideration to evaluate our choices at Fanta F1 on this third day. So let's see our recommendations for the Australian Grand Prix.
Ferrari, positive sensations but watch out for degradation
Although it was possible to lap very little and even badly, the first "ray of sunshine" arrived for Ferrari in Melbourne. In fact, the SF-23, unlike the first two appointments, seems to have immediately found the right balance, even if the single-seater is still struggling in fast direction changes. It's not much, especially considering the great form of Aston Martin, at the moment Red Bull's most affordable target, but it's still a figure to take into consideration while waiting for the substantial updates that will come later, after the first forced break from the calendar. There is a desire for redemption especially with Leclerc, who has not yet been able to play a "linear" race between problems and penalties.
Ferrari in Melbourne is a candidate for third force, also seeing the first approach of the W14, in a desperate search for load, but degradation is still unknown. In fact, the temperatures in Melbourne are lower and Ferrari could struggle more than they should in getting the harder tires up to temperature.
Red Bull flies, and DRS gives a nice assist
Despite various little problems during the first day of free practice determined by a diversified study on the set-up, the superiority of Red Bull, also considering the 4 DRS zones, would push anyone to line up one of the two drivers of the Austrian team. The RB19 has excellent aerodynamic efficiency. Also, nobody gets as much benefit from the moving wing as this car. Tomorrow the team will have to evaluate which configuration to favor, find the balance between a more conservative approach and a more extreme one, highlighted by the continuous corrections from Verstappen. The Milton Keynes team has been chasing victory in Australia since 2011. Not getting there now would be a bad blow.
Aston Martin tries
Fernando Alonso, after taking two podium finishes in his debut races with Aston Martin, is on the hunt for the victory number 33 in his career. On a circuit like this, the high aerodynamic load of the AMR23 puts the Spaniard in the right conditions to try to get there, perhaps in a crazy race. The single-seater shines above all in the first sector, also thanks to the excellent work that has been done on the suspensions. Who knows if the Asturian will succeed in the enterprise.
At the center of the group some news
In the large group there are various innovations, first of all those concerning the new internal combustion engines used by Ferrari "customers", i.e. Haas and Alfa Romeo. Speaking of updates, however, there is a team that has anticipated the rest of the group, already bringing some from Melbourne news important ones, namely AlphaTauri. The Faenza team didn't exactly shine in these first two rounds, so much so that it deserved a dressing down from the team principal. Together with McLaren it is the only team to have 0 points in the standings. After the criticisms, therefore, the first technical answers arrived with the introduction of a completely revised bottom to increase the aerodynamic load and more. McLaren, on the other hand, is expecting the first important updates in Baku, while Alfa Romeo has brought some new features on the front of the C43 to Melbourne.
As far as the Alpine is concerned, it is no surprise to find it in the top positions thanks to its excellent top speed.
Who to field at Fanta F1?
But let's get to the sore point or who to deploy at Fanta F1. Here is our pick.
Verstappen (captain) – Alonso – Gasly – Tsunoda – Albon
We continue to favor Max, but if you wanted to make a mixed team you could pair Perez with Russell.
Let's see instead the choices for forecasts
Safety Car: YES
Virtual Safety Car: YES
Red Flag: NO
Drivers unmark wet/full wet tires in the race: NO
Team double in the race: NO
Driver who starts from pole wins the race: YES
Stables to bring both riders into the top 10: 4
Drivers forced to retire: 3
