Dubai Telegraph - Verstappen wary of revamped Australian GP circuit as Leclerc looms

EUR -
AED 3.833114
AFN 76.567491
ALL 99.259156
AMD 416.113834
ANG 1.876383
AOA 951.75484
ARS 1102.422229
AUD 1.658046
AWG 1.878463
AZN 1.77241
BAM 1.962496
BBD 2.102103
BDT 126.4916
BGN 1.956508
BHD 0.393332
BIF 3082.557627
BMD 1.043591
BND 1.409063
BOB 7.193545
BRL 6.019742
BSD 1.041057
BTN 90.414201
BWP 14.410307
BYN 3.407074
BYR 20454.380029
BZD 2.091266
CAD 1.487999
CDF 2995.105789
CHF 0.951025
CLF 0.026012
CLP 998.192852
CNY 7.627658
CNH 7.601745
COP 4348.851656
CRC 526.943418
CUC 1.043591
CUP 27.655157
CVE 110.640926
CZK 25.050315
DJF 185.393466
DKK 7.459066
DOP 64.565872
DZD 141.659649
EGP 52.823958
ERN 15.653862
ETB 133.710299
FJD 2.411373
FKP 0.838686
GBP 0.83527
GEL 2.942647
GGP 0.838686
GHS 16.084419
GIP 0.838686
GMD 74.61865
GNF 8999.69945
GTQ 8.037308
GYD 218.027661
HKD 8.125878
HNL 26.543221
HRK 7.535612
HTG 136.371646
HUF 401.40678
IDR 17067.145132
ILS 3.733248
IMP 0.838686
INR 90.652299
IQD 1363.866694
IRR 43922.136075
ISK 146.603632
JEP 0.838686
JMD 163.936434
JOD 0.740426
JPY 160.901901
KES 134.738025
KGS 91.261942
KHR 4173.741074
KMF 495.235707
KPW 939.325723
KRW 1510.905541
KWD 0.322302
KYD 0.867569
KZT 525.076636
LAK 22636.780841
LBP 93247.90984
LKR 309.318384
LRD 207.695689
LSL 19.197463
LTL 3.081453
LVL 0.631258
LYD 5.129527
MAD 10.412429
MDL 19.609379
MGA 4846.583383
MKD 61.53006
MMK 2190.454189
MNT 3612.026342
MOP 8.352178
MRU 41.449201
MUR 48.589402
MVR 16.069533
MWK 1805.320449
MXN 21.40199
MYR 4.649176
MZN 66.696045
NAD 19.197186
NGN 1569.372692
NIO 38.314403
NOK 11.70635
NPR 144.675041
NZD 1.844208
OMR 0.401795
PAB 1.041052
PEN 3.863483
PGK 4.185623
PHP 60.68011
PKR 290.673695
PLN 4.157828
PYG 8192.069765
QAR 3.795998
RON 4.977196
RSD 117.110727
RUB 98.098587
RWF 1482.522415
SAR 3.914022
SBD 8.815174
SCR 15.242662
SDG 627.198197
SEK 11.284676
SGD 1.406588
SHP 0.859488
SLE 23.790587
SLL 21883.578854
SOS 595.056039
SRD 36.739585
STD 21600.222927
SVC 9.109169
SYP 13569.828152
SZL 19.195773
THB 35.302069
TJS 11.373745
TMT 3.652568
TND 3.31697
TOP 2.444196
TRY 37.687401
TTD 7.063168
TWD 34.204007
TZS 2709.161534
UAH 43.552422
UGX 3829.958033
USD 1.043591
UYU 45.113282
UZS 13523.142074
VES 63.940076
VND 26559.386313
VUV 129.053828
WST 2.961052
XAF 658.231323
XAG 0.032325
XAU 0.000358
XCD 2.820356
XDR 0.797128
XOF 658.206007
XPF 119.331742
YER 258.810603
ZAR 19.264217
ZMK 9393.568829
ZMW 29.124795
ZWL 336.035818
  • CMSC

    -0.1800

    23.28

    -0.77%

  • CMSD

    -0.1800

    23.71

    -0.76%

  • SCS

    -0.0500

    11.93

    -0.42%

  • GSK

    0.0600

    36.13

    +0.17%

  • NGG

    -0.9000

    60.58

    -1.49%

  • BCC

    -4.6000

    118.72

    -3.87%

  • BCE

    0.3800

    23.26

    +1.63%

  • RIO

    0.3900

    62.04

    +0.63%

  • AZN

    1.7000

    74.43

    +2.28%

  • RBGPF

    64.0100

    64.01

    +100%

  • JRI

    -0.0200

    12.85

    -0.16%

  • RYCEF

    0.0200

    7.69

    +0.26%

  • VOD

    0.0900

    8.59

    +1.05%

  • BTI

    0.2200

    42.74

    +0.51%

  • BP

    0.1300

    34.68

    +0.37%

  • RELX

    0.1100

    51.44

    +0.21%

Verstappen wary of revamped Australian GP circuit as Leclerc looms
Verstappen wary of revamped Australian GP circuit as Leclerc looms

Verstappen wary of revamped Australian GP circuit as Leclerc looms

World champion Max Verstappen is eyeing a "smooth weekend" to build on his victory in Saudi Arabia, but is wary about a revamped Albert Park circuit as Formula One returns to Melbourne after a two-year hiatus.

Text size:

The 24-year-old Red Bull driver was a relieved man after battling to a thrilling win ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in Jeddah last month.

It was a satisfying triumph for Verstappen after Monaco's Leclerc clinched the season-opening grand prix in Bahrain where the Dutchman failed to finish.

The young rivals again shape as the men to beat in the third race of the year, with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton desperate for improvement from Mercedes on a track where he has taken eight poles, including the last six.

It will be a new experience for all drivers, with Albert Park undergoing its most significant modifications since first hosting a grand prix in 1996.

A full resurfacing has taken place with seven corners modified and two removed, bringing the number of turns down to 14, providing more overtaking opportunities and lap times up to five seconds quicker than in the past.

"It will be interesting to see the track updates, I think they will make quite a big difference, especially in turn six where the most significant change has happened," said Verstappen, who is 20 points behind Leclerc in the drivers' standings.

"There should be more overtaking opportunities now too which is always positive. It's going to be interesting to see how the car performs in Australia, the track can sometimes be quite dusty. I hope we can have another smooth weekend as a team."

Verstappen made his Formula One debut in Melbourne in 2015 for Red Bull's junior team Toro Rosso.

Hamilton, who has won more Formula One races than any driver in history, has topped the podium twice in Australia, but not since 2015.

- Vettel returns -

His chances of doing so again appear slim on the evidence of the opening two races, where Mercedes struggled with speed and managing downforce, prompting the Briton to complain in Saudi Arabia his car was "undriveable".

After being gifted third place in Bahrain, when neither Red Bull finished, he managed just 10th in Jeddah, having qualified 16th.

Team boss Toto Wolff is not holding out hope of big improvements in Melbourne.

"There won't be a magic fix for the next race weekend," he said.

Albert Park had previously held the season-opening race every year since 1996, but was moved to third on the calendar this time to allow Covid restrictions to ease in Victoria state.

Melbourne missed out in 2021 due to strict quarantine and entry regulations, after 2020 was sensationally scrapped just before the first official Friday practice session as concerns spiked following a McLaren staff member testing positive.

Valtteri Bottas, now driving for Alfa Romeo, won the last Australian Grand Prix three years ago, ahead of then-Mercedes teammate Hamilton by 20.886secs, the biggest margin of victory in the Finnish driver's 10 race wins.

Australia will mark the first grand prix of the season for four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, who has been out of action after testing positive for Covid before the Bahrain season-opener.

"For me, after nearly a month out of the car, it will be important to learn throughout the practice sessions," said the Aston Martin driver, whose team are yet to register a world championship point.

"I hope we can take some steps forward in what is usually an exciting and unpredictable race," said the German.

Vettel is a three-time winner at Albert Park -- in 2011, 2017 and 2018. Other than Hamilton and Bottas, the only other driver on the grid this weekend who has tasted victory in Australia is Fernando Alonso, but that was 16 years ago in a Renault.

A.Ansari--DT