Formula One - Australian GP - 29 March 2009

[rolf]

Perhaps a little early but one to watch is Brawn. Yesterday they set a blistering pace at Barcelona. Their laptimes were less than qualifying pace for other teams who are running scared. The mainstream media have only just got a hold of this today. Everyone expected Brawn to be at the back of the grid given that this is their one and only test. However, they have been working on this car for close to 2 years and their aerodynamics are very unique. Could they be running underweight to get sponsors on board? It's possible and it has been done before by Prost GP several years ago. However, you have to question why a team would not want to get meaningful data at their very first and what may be their one and only test (although I understand they are going to Jerez). If the other teams don't catch up then one of the drivers would naturally be in the running for the drivers championship, perhaps the constructors championship is a safer bet. There are no prices yet from Betfair (haven't checked elsewhere) for the Aussie GP but I'll be back when there are. For the moment, Brawn are 14.5 to win the WCC and Button/Barichello 25/34 to win the WDC. I'd say Barichello is the smarter bet with experience of winning and having outclassed his teammate last year.

[GaF]

Re: Formula One - Australian GP - 29 March 2009 McClaren - "We are not competitive"!!! http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/formula_one/7941572.stm