Australian Grand Prix: Facts & Figures

By Andrew Hooper
February 27 2004

 

 

  
Facts & Figures
 
 * The Albert Park circuit is situated in the centre of Melbourne and, at its heart, the park has a lake of the same name.

* Lap distance is 5.303 kilometres and the race will comprise 58 laps in total (307.574 kilometres).

* The Grand Prix starts at 14:00 hrs local time (GMT + 10 hours) on Sunday 7th March.

* 2004 will be the ninth time that Melbourne has hosted the Australian Grand Prix. The race was formerly held in Adelaide, where WilliamsF1 claimed four victories. WilliamsF1's only victory in Melbourne was won by Damon Hill in 1996.

* In the four years since WilliamsF1 joined forces with BMW, the team has had mixed fortunes in Melbourne. At the team's debut event in 2000, Ralf Schumacher finished in third place and, in 2001, both cars were forced to retire from the race. In 2002, Juan Pablo Montoya took a second-placed finish after Ralf Schumacher crashed out of the race on the very first corner following an accident with Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari). In 2003, Montoya spun while in the lead, just ten laps from the finish, forfeiting his chances of winning but still coming home in second place. Ralf Schumacher was in third position when a protracted pit stop resulted in an eighth-placed finish.

* After Montoya's incident, David Coulthard (McLaren-Mercedes) went on to win the 2003 Australian Grand Prix. His team-mate, Kimi Raikkonen, drove the fastest lap of the race in a 1: 27.724m. Pole position in 2003 was claimed by Ferrari driver Michael Schumacher with a lap time of 1:27.173m.

* The schedule for this year's Australian Grand Prix, based on the new regulations, is as follows:
o Free practice: Friday from 11:00 to 12:00 hrs and 14:00 to 15:00 hrs; Saturday from 10:00 to 10:45 hrs and 11:15 to 12:00 hrs.
o Qualifying begins at 14:00 hrs on Saturday and comprises two consecutive timed laps. The starting order for the first flying lap is based on the results of the 2003 final in Japan. In that race, Ralf Schumacher finished in 12th place and Montoya retired. The Suzuka winner, Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari), will commence the Melbourne qualifying session in 2004. For the second part of qualifying, the lap times achieved in the first session determine the running order, but in reverse - the slowest driver is first to go out onto the track.

* Melbourne lies on the south eastern coast of Australia and is the capital of the state of Victoria. It is Australia's second largest city and has a population of 3.2 million. The city covers an area of more than 36.5 square kilometres.

* The track marshals in Melbourne will be joined by a number of marshals from Bahrain in order to gain some first-hand experience. At the Bahrain Grand Prix, the third round of the World Championship season, experienced marshals from Australia will be in attendance.

* Following last year's extreme drought, restrictions on the use of water still applies in Melbourne. However, the greenery at Albert Park will once again benefit from more than 100,000 litres of water, available from mid-February 2004, when a swimming pool and spa exhibition at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre ends.

* Waving the chequered flag at this year's Australian Grand Prix will be Stephanie Sheene, widow of two-time motorcycle World Champion Barry Sheene, who died in March 2003 at the age of 52.
 
 
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