Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel, and Melbourne pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton, failed to finish Sunday’s 2014 season opener.<\/p>\n
Both men struck trouble right from the start at Albert Park, after a winter of technical struggles up and down the paddock.<\/p>\n
“It’s a long season,” said German Vettel, whose run of victories dating all the way back to last August finally ended, “and there are positives.”<\/p>\n
The bright side is that Red Bull’s ‘crisis’ appears to be rapidly ending, as teammate Daniel Ricciardo delighted the partisan crowd by finishing second.<\/p>\n
Vettel’s problems started before qualifying, when his car’s fuel flow sensor reportedly alerted the FIA that the Renault engine was using more than the allowed 100kg of fuel per hour.<\/p>\n
“The (Renault) software was changed so this no longer occurred,” reported Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.\u00a0 “Ricciardo’s worked, Vettel’s did not.”<\/p>\n
Ricciardo was delighted.<\/p>\n
“Just two or three weeks ago, I would have bet everything I’ve got that we would not be standing up here,” he told 1980 world champion Alan Jones on the podium.<\/p>\n
“Full credit to the team for an unbelievable turnaround,” the Australian added.<\/p>\n
Hamilton, meanwhile, was as glum as Vettel as his otherwise dominant Mercedes struck trouble with an engine misfire.<\/p>\n
But “the important thing,” the Briton said behind the pit buildings, “is that the car is quick.<\/p>\n
“It’s early stages and there’s a long way to go.\u00a0 There’s massive positives to take from the weekend.”<\/p>\n
Indeed, Hamilton was cheered by the performance of his winning teammate Nico Rosberg, who won easily by almost half a minute.<\/p>\n
“What a car you have given me,” German Rosberg told his Mercedes crew on the radio, “what a car.”<\/p>\n
More surprising than Rosberg’s victory was the fact that doomsday predictions of cars failing left, right and centre did not materialise, as 14 cars saw the chequered flag.<\/p>\n
“The teams are learning so much so quickly,” said former F1 driver David Coulthard on British television BBC.<\/p>\n
“The ones who have managed the new technology best were Mercedes,” he added.<\/p>\n
Rosberg, however, warned that the arms race is definitely now on.<\/p>\n
“We can improve and we must improve,” he said.\u00a0 “The other teams will not go to sleep so we have to make sure we are ready for Malaysia.”<\/p>\n
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