Formula 1 ensures that the GP in Australia will take place: drivers and teams will arrive in Melbourne despite the rescheduled flights
The war in Iran seems, at least for the moment, not to stop the (highly awaited) start of the new Formula 1 season. Travis AuldCEO of the Australian Grand Prix, has dispelled doubts in the last few hours: drivers, engineers and team directors will all be in Melbourne in time for the start on March 8th. More than legitimate doubts, after the tire tests in Bahrain, organized by Pirelli, were canceled for safety reasons.
Formula 1 will start from Australia
“F1 is expert at moving people around the world,” Auld told Australian media. «They quickly rescheduled the flights. I was told that time everyone is on board and arrives within the required time”. He further added that «the drivers will be here, the engineers will be here, the team principals will be here, they are the ones who have been given priority. Some of the other staff are leaving now, we could probably do the race without them but luckily we managed to get everyone here who needs to be here.” A reassurance that appears clear, in short, at a time when geopolitical tensions make any logistical certainty anything but a given.
Sports precedents in Australia
And while the organizational machine works at full capacity to get the ball rolling despite the war, the numbers tell a curious story. In the last five editions of the Australian Grand Prix no driver has won twice: Bottas, Leclerc, Verstappen, Sainz and Norris have each lifted the trophy only once. To find a consecutive encore, you have to go back to the two-year period 2017-2018, when Sebastian Vettel succeeded in the feat with Ferrari, moreover in the midst of the era of Mercedes domination.
Among the drivers still on the grid, only Lewis Hamilton has won more than once in Australia: in 2008 with McLaren and in 2015 with Mercedes. A fact that says a lot about how unpredictable Albert Park can be.
