Pole sitter George Russell has won the Australian Grand Prix, leading his teammate Antonelli to a perfect result for Mercedes AMG F1. Ferrari didn't make it easy though with the Maranello based team effectively losing out on strategy, forcing Leclerc to settle for third.
0,5 MJ is a joke - it would have made no difference to just leave out this bonus. The additional deployment freedom is what makes the difference - although especially in Melbourne just doing super-clipping less long than the other guy will be even more powerful.
I am also not really sure if recovering the maximum allowed energy will be the fastest way around the track. According to my armchair Excel simulation, they will need around 11 seconds of super-clipping, to reach 8 MJ (in addition to what they recover from braking and part-throttle).
Could it be that your calculations underestimate how much can be recharged under braking and at partial throttle? I looked up what you posted in the 2026 PU thread and I'm not sure if you have taken the longer braking zones into account. And also I'm really not sure if the rule about fuel flow at partial load really does refer to the PU power, but rather to the engine power as it says, which would potentially allow for more recovery under partial throttle.
Currently blowing my mind that I’ve not gone to bed yet for Thursday but the F3 Friday practice session is underway in Melbourne.
I guess that’s time zones for you.
Have a good one guys n gals
Just a fan's point of view*
*statement was relevant when the forum had a high level of intelligence. Now we are just equals.
Few laps of long run for Mercedes, in low 1.24.xxx and Red Bull in high 1.24.xxx. Lewis had couple of long run laps with one in high 1.23.xxx and one in high 1.24.xxx.
I’m at the GP with my son, and we’ve both noticed they smell very different this year thanks to the new fuels, Audi in particular smells quite different from the others, sounds different too. I’d like to describe the smell, but it’s really hard to describe.
Few laps of long run for Mercedes, in low 1.24.xxx and Red Bull in high 1.24.xxx. Lewis had couple of long run laps with one in high 1.23.xxx and one in high 1.24.xxx.
OK, so watching Leclerc's onboard, here's what a 2026 push lap looks like on Melbourne
[*] Energy deployment quite a bit after corner exit at the start of the lap, and the power surge sounds like the old "VTEC kicked in" memes
[*] a little bit of LiCo into T1 and T3
[*] signal cut a bit, but feels like a TON of superclipping into T6 and T9. Before the corners, feels like there's no braking at all. No downshifting in the Ferrari tho.
[*] Superclipping into T11 and T13 (a bit more than T1), and full deployment on the exit of T14
[*] Overall the cars feel a bit trickier in the corners, but fairly pointy at the same time.
I feel like managing the superclipping into T6 and T9 could be very tricky to get perfect for a qualy lap.
Also, if they are doing it to that extent in the race, a driver with a little bit more battery saved could certainly make an overtake with the override (or maybe just boost)
Also, if they are doing it to that extent in the race, a driver with a little bit more battery saved could certainly make an overtake with the override (or maybe just boost)
They'll have to do more of everything in the race because heavier cars use more energy on the straights.
