Teams React to Aussie Grand Prix

The 2012 Formula 1 season has officially begun, and it did so in fantastic style with Jensen Button taking the win. In a way it was also the first real test of the cars. During the official testing schedule teams will not run full out in fear of getting their competitive edge stolen, this race was the first time all of the teams were racing full out in anger, and it gave the teams a bounty of data. 

McLaren's first and third finish proves that the team can still perform. 

"We have got some formidable competitors in Red Bull, Ferrari, and Mercedes, plus Lotus looks strong as well. It is pretty tight - as it should be. This is F1. It should be difficult to win and it is. Providing we can continue to improve the car, not make mistakes, and be reliable, there is no reason why we cannot recapture [the championship]," said Martin Whitmarsh Team Principal of McLaren. 

Red Bull's second and fourth finish might not live up to the team's dominance last season, but it was still a strong finish. 

"So I think there are circuits that will affect performance, but I think the teams are very closely matched at this point of time. As always, though, it will be a development race between now and the end of the season. Whoever gets the most performance from the car quick enough will see a gain from that. We knew McLaren from winter testing were competitive, and we have seen that here this weekend. But our race pace was every bit equal to them here – and neither of the drivers have been totally happy with their cars here this weekend. We know where we need to improve, we have plenty of things in the pipeline and so we take an awful lot of positives out of this weekend, with a podium and fourth place finish," said Red Bull boss Christian Horner. 

Ferrari managed a fifth place with Fernando Alonso, but Felipe Massa crashed into Bruno Senna during the race knocking both drivers out. Given how pessimistic the team was before the season, a fifth place seems impressive. 

"I would say it is a step forward, but we do not have to hide behind that, because we are not happy with the performance of the car. What I am really asking from my engineers is to push as much as possible to try to fix the things that, in their view, are now much clearer. In terms of developments: yes, there are a lot of things that have to be improved because as qualifying showed, we have fundamental issues – one is the speed, and the other thing is the traction. They are the two fundamental things that we need to work hard to fix," said Ferrari Team Principal Stefano Domenicali. 

Source: Autosport, Autosport and Autosport