2007 Australian Grand Prix

The 2007 Australian Grand Prix, alternately known as the 2007 Formula 1 ING Australian Grand Prix, was the opening round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, on 18 March 2007.'Australia 2007: Raikkonen sweeps the Park.', crash.net, (Crash Media Group, 18/03/2007), https://www.crash.net/f1/race-report/58087/1/australia-2007-raikkonen-sweeps-the-park, (Accessed 12/02/2020) The race would be notable as the debut for future World Champion Lewis Hamilton, as Kimi Räikkönen swept to victory on his debut for .
The winter of had been dominated by big name moves at the head of the field, which had been sparked by the retirement of Michael Schumacher at the end of the previous season.'Australian GP, 2007', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2007), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr769.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020) Räikkönen hence moved to the Scuderia to take the German's seat, opening the door for defending Champion Fernando Alonso to move to to partner GP2 Series Champion Hamilton. Alonso's seat at was taken by another GP2 graduate in Heikki Kovalainen, with Giancarlo Fisichella taking over as their lead driver.
Away from the driver front and there had been some significant changes to the cars, with Michelin having pulled out of the series to leave Bridgestone as the sole tyre supplier. Furthermore, teams would have to use both a "hard" (prime) and a "soft" (option) tyre during the race, while there would also be severe testing limitations implemented for the season.
Into the opening weekend itself and it was Ferrari's new signing who streaked to pole position in qualifying, Räikkönen beating Alonso by 0.421s. Nick Heidfeld was third for ahead of debutante Hamilton, while Takuma Sato caused a stir by getting into Q3 with , beating the factory squad in the process.
Räikkönen made a clean getaway to claim an early lead at the start of the race, while Alonso was immediately passed by Heidfeld, only to try and rally back and hence allow teammate Hamilton to sweep past for third. At the back, meanwhile, Anthony Davidson stalled but managed to fire his car back up, only to be clipped by Adrian Sutil in the .
The race would quickly settle into a sedate rhythm, with Räikkönen easing away from Heidfeld, while Hamilton and Alonso tried in vain to find a way past the BMW Sauber. Elsewhere, Christijan Albers had become the first retirement of the season by getting stuck in the gravel at the Sports Centre, Felipe Massa was struggling to climb up the order, while Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello were having a poor day in strikingly liveried Hondas.
McLaren's race would, however, come alive as the first round of stops began, with Heidfeld diving in on lap fifteen to release the two silver cars. Räikkönen was the next driver to pit, four laps after the German racer, with Alonso stopping a lap later. Hamilton hence led on his debut for two laps before making his stop, with both himself and Alonso jumping Heidfeld.
Yet, there would be no catching Räikkönen at the head of the field, the #6 Ferrari continuing to build a lead over the two McLarens. Attention hence focused on the midfield, with Kovalainen enduring a miserable debut by spinning at the Jones chicane, Nico Rosberg fighting with the two factory s, and David Coulthard making a spectacular exit by crashing over the top of Alexander Wurz.
Back with the leaders and the second round of stops were sparked by Räikkönen, who duly rejoined in third behind the two McLarens. Hamilton was next to venture into the pitlane and rejoined behind the Finn, only for Alonso to charge in a lap later and claim second from the Brit.
With that the fight for victory was over, with Räikkönen nursing his car through the final laps to secure victory, becoming the first Ferrari debutante to do so since Nigel Mansell won the 1989 Brazilian Grand Prix. Alonso and Hamilton completed the podium, the latter becoming the first rookie to do so since Jacques Villeneuve in 1996, while it was also the first podium in which all drivers had been making their debuts for their teams.
Heidfeld was best of the rest in fourth, twenty seconds behind Hamilton, with Fisichella and Massa the last of those on the lead lap. Rosberg and Ralf Schumacher completed the points scorers, with seventeen drivers completing the opening round.
==Background==
===Entry list===
The full entry list for the is outlined below:
No. 	Driver 	Entrant 	Constructor 	Chassis 	Engine 	Model 	Tyre
1 	Fernando Alonso 	Vodafone McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4-22 	 	FO 1080T 2.4 V8 	
2 	Lewis Hamilton 	Vodafone McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4-22 	 	FO 1080T 2.4 V8 	
3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	ING Renault F1 Team 	 	R27 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	ING Renault F1 Team 	 	R27 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
5 	Felipe Massa 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F2007 	 	056 2007 2.4 V8 	
6 	Kimi Räikkönen 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F2007 	 	056 2007 2.4 V8 	
7 	Jenson Button 	Honda Racing Team 	 	RA107 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
8 	Rubens Barrichello 	Honda Racing Team 	 	RA107 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
9 	Nick Heidfeld 	BMW Sauber F1 Team 	 	F1.07 	 	P806/7 2.4 V8 	
10 	Robert Kubica 	BMW Sauber F1 Team 	 	F1.07 	 	P806/7 2.4 V8 	
11 	Ralf Schumacher 	Panasonic Toyota Racing 	 	TF107 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
12 	Jarno Trulli 	Panasonic Toyota Racing 	 	TF107 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
14 	David Coulthard 	Red Bull Racing 	 	RB3 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
15 	Mark Webber 	Red Bull Racing 	 	RB3 	 	RS27 2.4 V8 	
16 	Nico Rosberg 	AT&T Williams 	 	FW29 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
17 	Alexander Wurz 	AT&T Williams 	 	FW29 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	Scuderia Toro Rosso 	 	STR2 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
19 	Scott Speed 	Scuderia Toro Rosso 	 	STR2 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
20 	Adrian Sutil 	Etihad Aldar Spyker F1 Team 	 	F8-VII 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
21 	Christijan Albers 	Etihad Aldar Spyker F1 Team 	 	F8-VII 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
22 	Takuma Sato 	Super Aguri F1 Team 	 	SA07 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
23 	Anthony Davidson 	Super Aguri F1 Team 	 	SA07 	 	RA807E 2.4 V8 	
Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only 	Test Drivers for Practice Sessions Only
35 	Sebastian Vettel 	BMW Sauber F1 Team 	 	F1.07 	 	P806/7 2.4 V8 	
38 	Kazuki Nakajima 	AT&T Williams 	 	FW29 	 	RVX-07 2.4 V8 	
 	Giedo van der Garde 	Etihad Aldar Spyker F1 Team 	 	F8-VII 	 	056 2006 2.4 V8 	
Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/engages.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)
* Giedo van der Garde was supposed to be Spyker's third driver, but she failed to get the required FIA Super Licence in time.https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/van-der-garde-waits-on-superlicence-4407028/4407028/
==Practice Overview==
==Qualifying==
===Q1===
===Q2===
===Q3===
===Qualifying Results===
The full qualifying results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Team 	 	Q1 	Q1 	 	Q2 	Q2 	 	Q3 	Q3 	Grid
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Team 	 	Pos. 	Time 	 	Pos. 	Time 	 	Pos. 	Time 	Grid
1 	6 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	 	1 	1:26.644 	 	4 	1:25.644 	 	1 	1:26.072 	1
2 	1 	Fernando Alonso 	 	 	4 	1:26.697 	 	1 	1:25.326 	 	2 	1:26.493 	2
3 	9 	Nick Heidfeld 	 	 	6 	1:26.895 	 	2 	1:25.358 	 	3 	1:26.556 	3
4 	2 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	 	2 	1:26.674 	 	3 	1:25.577 	 	4 	1:26.755 	4
5 	10 	Robert Kubica 	 	 	3 	1:26.696 	 	5 	1:25.882 	 	5 	1:27.347 	5
6 	3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	 	10 	1:27.270 	 	6 	1:25.944 	 	6 	1:27.634 	6
7 	15 	Mark Webber 	 	 	7 	1:26.978 	 	7 	1:26.623 	 	7 	1:27.934 	7
8 	12 	Jarno Trulli 	 	 	9 	1:27.014 	 	8 	1:26.688 	 	8 	1:28.404 	8
9 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	 	11 	1:27.328 	 	9 	1:26.739 	 	9 	1:28.692 	9
10 	22 	Takuma Sato 	 	 	12 	1:27.365 	 	10 	1:26.758 	 	10 	1:28.871 	10
11 	23 	Anthony Davidson 	 	 	8 	1:26.986 	 	11 	1:26.909 	 	 	 	11
12 	16 	Nico Rosberg 	 	 	16 	1:27.596 	 	12 	1:26.914 	 	 	 	12
13 	4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	 	 	14 	1:27.529 	 	13 	1:26.964 	 	 	 	13
14 	7 	Jenson Button 	 	 	15 	1:27.540 	 	14 	1:27.264 	 	 	 	14
15 	17 	Alexander Wurz 	 	 	13 	1:27.479 	 	15 	1:27.393 	 	 	 	15
16* 	5 	Felipe Massa 	 	 	5 	1:26.712 	 	NC 	— 	 	 	 	22
17 	8 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	 	17 	1:27.679 	 	 	 	 	 	 	16
18 	19 	Scott Speed 	 	 	18 	1:28.305 	 	 	 	 	 	 	17
19 	14 	David Coulthard 	 	 	19 	1:28.579 	 	 	 	 	 	 	18
20 	18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	 	 	20 	1:29.267 	 	 	 	 	 	 	19
21 	20 	Adrian Sutil 	 	 	21 	1:29.339 	 	 	 	 	 	 	20
22 	21 	Christijan Albers 	 	 	22 	1:31.932 	 	 	 	 	 	 	21
Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Limited, 2006), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2007/races/808/australia/qualifying.html, (Accessed 12/02/2020)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session.
*Bold indicates the fastest driver's time in each session.
** Massa was handed a ten place grid penalty for changing his engine.
===Grid===
** Albers would start the race from the pitlane.
==Race==
===Report===
===Results===
The full results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor 	Laps 	Time/Retired 	Grid 	Points
1 	6 	Kimi Räikkönen 	 	58 	1:25:28.770 	1 	10
2 	1 	Fernando Alonso 	 	58 	+7.242s 	2 	8
3 	2 	Lewis Hamilton 	 	58 	+18.595s 	4 	6
4 	9 	Nick Heidfeld 	 	58 	+38.763s 	3 	5
5 	3 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	58 	+1:06.469 	6 	4
6 	5 	Felipe Massa 	 	58 	+1:06.805 	22 	3
7 	16 	Nico Rosberg 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	12 	2
8 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	9 	1
9 	12 	Jarno Trulli 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	8 	
10 	4 	Heikki Kovalainen 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	13 	
11 	8 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	16 	
12 	22 	Takuma Sato 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	10 	
13 	15 	Mark Webber 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	7 	
14 	18 	Vitantonio Liuzzi 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	19 	
15 	7 	Jenson Button 	 	57 	+1 Lap 	14 	
16 	23 	Anthony Davidson 	 	56 	+2 Laps 	11 	
17 	20 	Adrian Sutil 	 	56 	+2 Laps 	20 	
Ret 	17 	Alexander Wurz 	 	48 	Collision 	15 	
Ret 	14 	David Coulthard 	 	48 	Collision 	18 	
Ret 	10 	Robert Kubica 	 	36 	Throttle 	5 	
Ret 	19 	Scott Speed 	 	28 	Tyre 	17 	
Ret 	21 	Christijan Albers 	 	10 	Accident 	21 	
Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)	Source:'Australia 2007: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.
==Milestones==
* Debut race for Lewis Hamilton, Heikki Kovalainen and Adrian Sutil.'1. Australia 2007', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2007/australie.aspx, (Accessed 12/02/2020)
* made their debut as a constructor.[Archived] '2007 Australian GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), https://web.archive.org/web/20190410024732/http://chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=2007&gp=Australian%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 12/02/2020) - Original
* Tenth career victory for Kimi Räikkönen.
** The Finn also became the first driver to win on their Ferrari debut since Nigel Mansell at the 1989 Brazilian Grand Prix.
* scored their 193rd win as a constructor and engine supplier.
* Maiden podium finish for Hamilton.
** Hamilton became the first debutante since Jacques Villeneuve at the 1996 Australian Grand Prix to finish on the podium.
* First race since the 1950 British Grand Prix that all drivers on the podium were making their debuts for their respective teams.
* Räikkönen recorded his twentieth fastest lap.
** Also the 100th fastest lap to be recorded using Bridgestone tyres.
==Standings==
It was Kimi Räikkönen who had opened the season with victory and the lead in the Championship, leaving Australia with ten points to his credit. Defending Champion Fernando Alonso began his title defence in second, with new teammate Lewis Hamilton and impressive third after his debut. Nick Heidfeld and Giancarlo Fisichella completed the opening day top five, with Felipe Massa, Nico Rosberg and Ralf Schumacher also on the board.
In the Constructors Championship it was who led the way, a point ahead of in second after the opening race. An eight point gap followed before appeared in third, with , and the factory completing the scorers.
World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers
Pos. 	Driver 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	Kimi Räikkönen 	10 	
2 	Fernando Alonso 	8 	
3 	Lewis Hamilton 	6 	
4 	Nick Heidfeld 	5 	
5 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	4 	
6 	Felipe Massa 	3 	
7 	Nico Rosberg 	2 	
8 	Ralf Schumacher 	1 	
World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*	World Championship for Constructors*
Pos. 	Team 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	 	14 	
2 	 	13 	
3 	 	5 	
4 	 	4 	
5 	 	2 	
6 	 	1 	
Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown.
** Includes points scored by before their exclusion prior to the 2007 Belgian Grand Prix.
==References==
Images and Videos:
*
References:
Category:2007 Grands Prix
Category:Grand Prix articles