@AnthonyFrench looks back on the Australian Grand Prix in Tweets.
The 2013 F1 season got off to an unusual start in Melbourne with heavy rain forcing qualifying to be postponed.
Once the rain relented the show got back on the road on Sunday morning and later that evening we had out first Grand Prix winner of 2013: Kimi Raikkonen.
Here’s a look back on the first race weekend of the year as told by the Tweets from teams, drivers and others.
Friday
The first official day of practice for the new season saw the best conditions of the weekend. But it wasn’t enough to tempt the drivers out of the garage for the first half-hour of practice which was mostly quiet.
When the finally emerged Red Bull headed the times in both sessions but it already looked like McLaren were in trouble.
The off-season is finally over – the pit lane exit light turns green and first practice begins at Melbourne. #F1
— F1 Fanatic Live (@f1fanaticlive) March 15, 2013
Here’s @jensonbutton before his run in P1. #f1 #australianGP twitter.com/TheFifthDriver?óÔé¼?ª
— McLaren (@TheFifthDriver) March 15, 2013
Perez is pulling a face like he’s having a filling done as McLaren have his cars on stands with some serious screwdriver action under way
— Sarah Holt (@sarahholtf1) March 15, 2013
Both cars are in the pits for what can only be described as more changes, more tweaks, and a bit of polish to the pretty paintscheme. #shiny
— Sahara Force India (@clubforce) March 15, 2013
Red Bull setting the pace, again. Their only problem in winter testing was finding a sandbag big enough…
— Kate Walker (@F1Kate) March 15, 2013
Mickey Muscles not quite sure what to do now physio’s have been banned from the pit board duty!! instagr.am/p/W3dOZdqUqT/
— Gary Paffett (@GaryPaffett) March 15, 2013
Ever wondered what @jensonbutton or @schecoperez are watching on TV in the cockpit? No more! #socialfriday twitter.com/TheFifthDriver?óÔé¼?ª
— McLaren (@TheFifthDriver) March 15, 2013
#Kimi gifts the crew some gravel after some minor shortcutting. Scheduled change of stuff time anyway #WeMissedYouyfrog.com/moevswwj
— Lotus F1 Team (@Lotus_F1Team) March 15, 2013
Not The best day.. Lost the rear in fp2! Some extra work to do Now. No worries, tomorrow a new day with new opportunities #NeverGiveUp
— Giedo van der Garde (@GvanderGarde) March 15, 2013
This is Gary – Max’s race engineer. He’s American. His sister loves our Tweets – it’s the only time she sees him! twitter.com/Marussia_F1Tea?óÔé¼?ª
— Marussia F1 Team (@Marussia_F1Team) March 15, 2013
#socialfriday @dezyroberts asks: “Who is Perez’s race engineer for the season ahead?” It’s the inestimable Mark Temple!
— McLaren (@TheFifthDriver) March 15, 2013
Time for a few last weight checks as the lights go green… we are back in business! #2013 #FeelTheForce twitter.com/clubforce/stat?óÔé¼?ª
— Sahara Force India (@clubforce) March 15, 2013
Good morning from Melbourne! First practice session soon to start, everything is ready in the garage of the Scuderia! twitter.com/InsideFerrari/?óÔé¼?ª
— Scuderia Ferrari (@InsideFerrari) March 15, 2013
Saturday
The weather took a turn for the worse on Saturday. Q1 was run on a wet track but after multiple delays the rest of the day’s running was postponed to Sunday.
Here is Adrian #Sutil arriving at the circuit – lots of fans waiting for an autograph and he was happy to help! twitter.com/clubforce/stat?óÔé¼?ª
— Sahara Force India (@clubforce) March 16, 2013
An old friend has dropped in to wish us luck today…! #fp2 #mclaren twitter.com/TheFifthDriver?óÔé¼?ª
— McLaren (@TheFifthDriver) March 16, 2013
#FP3 is on in Melbourne & the sky isn’t what it was yesterday! Grey but dry at the moment. Air temp 22C, track temp 32C #LightsOutDownUnder
— MERCEDES AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) March 16, 2013
Weather is not promising, big clouds (and probably rain) arriving…
— Scuderia Ferrari (@InsideFerrari) March 16, 2013
Problem for Vettel who’s pulled over. #F1
— F1 Fanatic Live (@f1fanaticlive) March 16, 2013
#F1 Gary Paffett tells BBC that the McLaren drivers reported that the car felt better in the their first (dry) laps today
— Adam Cooper (@adamcooperf1) March 16, 2013
Si parte! Ma continua a piovere…Here we go! But its still raining…
— Scuderia Ferrari (@InsideFerrari) March 16, 2013
Qualifying starts at 5pm in Melbourne, sunset is at 7:38pm, so they haven’t got much room to manoeuvre if they have to delay qualifying. #F1
— F1 Fanatic (@f1fanatic_co_uk) March 16, 2013
Oh how I’d love to be on Melbourne right now! Driving in the rain is my favourite condition. #f1
— James Calado (@JamesCalado) March 16, 2013
Lewis stuck in the grass but manages to get away… That was close #Q1
— MERCEDES AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) March 16, 2013
call them all back in, postpone it, clearly too wet #uturn
— Joshua Hill (@joshhillracing) March 16, 2013
"@westhamlad95: are you still an F1 fan? Even tho you don’t do it anymore">>No, I always get up at this time on a Saturday…?!!?
— Jake Humphrey (@mrjakehumphrey) March 16, 2013
A 1m45.192s for Jenson – currently fastest – and Jenson demonstrates again just how tactically brilliant he is in the wet!
— McLaren (@TheFifthDriver) March 16, 2013
Fascinating use of Inters, enough of a drying line to use it, managing the parts of track where still much water.
— Paul Hembery (@PaulHembery) March 16, 2013
Rain lashing down at the end of #Q1. #Q2 coming up (hopefully)… #AusGP
— Aus Grand Prix (@ausgrandprix) March 16, 2013
Australian Grand Prix qualifying postponed to Sunday morning: f1fanatic.co.uk/?p=70476 #F1
— F1 Fanatic (@f1fanatic_co_uk) March 16, 2013
Sunday
Sebastian Vettel started his season with pole position on Sunday but couldn’t maintain his place at the head of the field in the race, slipping behind Fernando Alonso and winner Kimi Raikkonen.
A very good morning from Melbourne for what can only be described as a very busy Sunday of racing!
— Sahara Force India (@clubforce) March 16, 2013
Big queue to come into Melbourne Albert Park ! twitter.com/alex_wurz/stat?óÔé¼?ª
— alex wurz (@alex_wurz) March 16, 2013
Here’s @maxchilton on the grid, readying himself for his F1 debut twitter.com/Marussia_F1Tea?óÔé¼?ª
— Marussia F1 Team (@Marussia_F1Team) March 17, 2013
#f1 Will be interested to see how Lotus go today. Good race pace and maybe a different strategy. Gooooo
— Paul Hembery (@PaulHembery) March 17, 2013
There is a problem with the fuel system @nicohulkenberg. for safety reasons we will not start with his car. @ausgrandprix#F1
— Sauber F1 Team (@OfficialSF1Team) March 17, 2013
The 2013 #F1 season is go in Australia!
— F1 Fanatic (@f1fanatic_co_uk) March 17, 2013
#AusGP #F1 Lotus ask Raikkonen to try to stay out during this light shower. He leads over Hamilton & Alonso.
— Aus Grand Prix (@ausgrandprix) March 17, 2013
Massa: “What are we going to do?” Smedley: “You’ve got a free track in front of you, let’s see what you can do.” #F1
— F1 Fanatic Live (@f1fanaticlive) March 17, 2013
All smiles from #Kimi as he collects the silverware; that’s one happy #Iceman! #F1 #WeBeatYou yfrog.com/mmzdcedj
— Lotus F1 Team (@Lotus_F1Team) March 17, 2013
“OK Lewis great job that’s P5. Race was won by Raikkonen on a two-stop.” #F1
— F1 Fanatic Live (@f1fanaticlive) March 17, 2013
Officially completed my first F1 raceWas always in a battle due to losing a front wing but the car was good & great job by @marussia_f1team
— Max Chilton (@maxchilton) March 17, 2013
Today was a good day. Thank you for all your support. I’m happy with that, positive start to the season. Next week will be better!!
— Lewis Hamilton (@LewisHamilton) March 17, 2013
Que bonito empezar as?â?¡…!Nice to start like this..!#forzaferrari twitter.com/alo_oficial/st?óÔé¼?ª
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) March 17, 2013
Whitmarsh: You take decisions in the winter and sometimes it doesn’t come off. Jenson scoring points was a great job #F1
— Maurice Hamilton (@MauriceHamilton) March 17, 2013
Watch Nico?é??s video message to you after a mixed first GP: “We will gonna have a good season.” (by webteam) youtu.be/QdVzRXtMzAU
— Nico Rosberg (@nico_rosberg) March 17, 2013
Tough weekend. I am absolutely knackered. But a good result. #AusGP
— Martin Galpin (@66laps) March 17, 2013
Not a bad first race, but we need to do better. Congrats to Kimi! Lets keep pushing @williamsf1team !
— Valtteri Bottas (@ValtteriBottas) March 17, 2013
1 down 18 to go !
— Dickie Stanford (@dickiestanford) March 17, 2013
Share any other great Tweets you spotted during the Australian Grand Prix in the comments.
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Ben (@scuderia29)
19th March 2013, 13:03
anyone else hate tweets? aha
Anthony Bosley (@)
19th March 2013, 13:06
I hated them so much at first but now that i’ve gotten used to twitter and tweets over the past few years, I’ve started to see the benefit of them over a grand prix weekend when it comes to getting info.
andae23 (@andae23)
19th March 2013, 14:58
Same for me: I always thought it’s useless, but it’s a brilliant for keeping you up to date. With Twitter you pretty much know the news before sites like F1F publish articles.
Estesark (@estesark)
19th March 2013, 13:42
Twitter has its shortcomings, but this was a great article, and I hope it will be a regular feature this season.
gwenouille (@gwenouille)
19th March 2013, 16:08
I have to confess they’re not my cup of tea neither…
Part of that “look-at-me-and-what-i-am-doing” egocentric society i guess.
Timing is now more important than substance it seems…
Ben (@scuderia29)
19th March 2013, 23:41
@gwenouille yes i think thats the reason i hate them! people havent been asked what theyre doing yet they feel like they need to tell everyone because they would obviously want to know :S (conveniently only if what theyre doing is exciting or positive)
evered7 (@evered7)
19th March 2013, 13:16
Paul Hembrey seems to have almost given away Lotus’ strategy before the race. I would pay close attention to what he says regarding the tires/team in the future.
kimrogue (@kimrogue)
19th March 2013, 14:24
Yup, now I don’t believe anyone that says that they didn’t see Kimi pulling the 2 stop!
Domo-kun
19th March 2013, 15:13
Naah, why would anyone listen, or believe some random fuy from some random tyre manufacturor? ;)
Sounak Chakrabarty (@sonkky)
19th March 2013, 15:55
+1..
There is a Driver’s meeting every Friday in which they do also Discuss Tires..
I am sure that Lotus told everyone there that they could do 25+ Laps on the Medium.
Then why were Alonso/Vettel saying that they did not see a 2 Stopper coming from anyone??
Antonio (@antoniocorleone)
20th March 2013, 0:44
I came up with that thought also…
I think now I’m going to follow Mr. “Pirelli” and read his tweets before making my predictions. ;)
Klaas (@klaas)
19th March 2013, 14:09
Again Alonso with his funny tweets and politics. They’re mind games, obviously aimed at Vettel.
MJ4
19th March 2013, 15:08
As mind games go, “Nice to start like this” is really subtle.
Nomore (@nomore)
19th March 2013, 15:36
“Red Bull setting the pace, again. Their only problem in winter testing was finding a sandbag big enough”
Were Red Bull sandbagging also in the race?
Sounak Chakrabarty (@sonkky)
19th March 2013, 16:10
Yup, they put it on Mark’s ECU by mistake
Brace (@brace)
20th March 2013, 0:08
@sonkky
Haha, I almost fell off my chair! XD
GeorgeTuk (@georgetuk)
19th March 2013, 16:29
Not really seeing any mind games in celebrating coming 2nd?!
John H (@john-h)
19th March 2013, 14:25
I presume that wasn’t sent after Q2 and Q3. Seriously, for every great decision with Jenson, there is at least one poor one… People just remember the good ones.
Ilanin (@ilanin)
19th March 2013, 15:48
It was presumably after Q2, when Jenson contradicted McLaren and told them to put inters on the car despite the team’s preference for sorts (and then promptly finished 4th, which is as high as we’ll be seeing an MP4/28 for some time, I’d imagine).
Ilanin (@ilanin)
19th March 2013, 15:49
softs. This this needs an edit feature.
Sounak Chakrabarty (@sonkky)
19th March 2013, 16:06
I think the timing of the Malyasian GP is way off..
It starts 2 hours after the Race in Australia(as GMT).. So, technically they could start it at 6.00 GMT instead of 8..
It rains every evening in Malayasia.. Its a system in Equatorial Countries called 4’o Clock Rain.. If it does not rain, then it is unique.. And when it rains there it Pours.. Judging by what happened in Australia, they would stop the race if it is anything more than Drizzle (The race was Red flagged for 30 mins Last Year).. So, why take a Gamble?? Bring the race forward by a couple of hours and start it in 14.00 Local Time (6.00 GMT)
Daniel (@collettdumbletonhall)
19th March 2013, 16:15
+1
They call races off very easily nowadays. Just look at China 2009 they were racing in those dreadful conditions and then in Canada 2011 they don’t restart until a dry line is visible.
If they’re going to give in to the weather so easily then they should take the necessary precautions.
Sounak Chakrabarty (@sonkky)
19th March 2013, 16:12
Dickie Standford is already counting down to the End of the Session.. Long session ahead for Williams
Sounak Chakrabarty (@sonkky)
19th March 2013, 16:20
*Stanford
Nick.UK (@)
19th March 2013, 17:02
Why have physios been banned from pit board duty, or is that a joke I’m not getting?
MNM101 (@mnm101)
19th March 2013, 18:53
its a new FIA regulation to limit team members at GPs
q85
20th March 2013, 7:30
how does that limit them?