Kimi Raikonnen became the surprising winner in the opening race of the 2013 Formula One season by mastering his tires and the rest of the field, gapping Fernando Alonso in 2nd place by 12 seconds, and pole sitter Sebastian Vettel by 22 seconds. Even though Raikonnen won the race pretty easily, the race itself was thrilling, featuring 10 lead changes between seven different drivers. Yet for Kimi, things were easier then it may have appeared,
“We've had a quick car all weekend and there were no issues with it either, so we could just focus on trying different things and getting the setup how we wanted. I had a good feeling that we would be ok with the tyres after practice and the team got the strategy perfect. I made a few places at the start and then had a good battle with Lewis [Hamilton] but after that it was quite simple; probably one of my easiest wins.”
What was easy for Kimi's Lotus was so much harder for Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel, who marveled at the Raikkonen two-stop care with his rubber, "We had a good day today with a pole and a podium - but in the race we were a little too aggressive with the tyres and lost the front and the rears, while others did a little better. There are always areas where you can improve, but the result we got today is fair. We didn't see Kimi on the track, he was too quick and Fernando jumped us at a vulnerable time - but we can be happy with third."
The season is off to a great start, looks like exciting, unpredictable races will once again be the theme in Formula One 2013.
Australian Grand Prix Results - 17 March 2013 - 58 Laps
POS DRIVER NATIONALITY ENTRANT LAPS TIME/RETIRE
1. Kimi Raikkonen Finland Lotus-Renault 58 1h30m03.225
2. Fernando Alonso Spain Ferrari 58 12.451
3. Sebastian Vettel Germany Red Bull-Renault 58 22.346
4. Felipe Massa Brazil Ferrari 58 33.577
5. Lewis Hamilton Britain Mercedes GP 58 45.561
6. Mark Webber Australia Red Bull-Renault 58 46.800
7. Adrian Sutil Germany Force India-Mercedes 58 1m05.068
8. Paul di Resta Britain Force India-Mercedes 58 1m08.449
9. Jenson Button Britain McLaren-Mercedes 58 1m21.630
10. Romain Grosjean France Lotus-Renault 58 1m22.759
11. Sergio Perez Mexico McLaren-Mercedes 58 1m23.367
12. Jean-Eric Vergne France Toro Rosso-Ferrari 58 1m23.857
13. Esteban Gutierrez Mexico Sauber-Ferrari 57 1 lap
14 Valtteri Bottas Finland Williams-Renault 57 1 lap
15. Jules Bianchi France Marussia-Cosworth 57 1 Lap
16. Charles Pic France Caterham-Renault 56 2 Laps
17. Max Chilton Britain Marussia-Cosworth 56 2 Laps
18. Giedo van der Garde Netherlands Caterham-Renault 56 2 Laps
R Daniel Ricciardo Australia Toro Rosso-Ferrari 40 Exhaust
R Nico Rosberg Germany Mercedes GP 26 Electrics
R Pastor Maldonado Venezuela Williams-Renault 25 Spin
5. Nico Hulkenberg Germany Sauber-Ferrari 1 Fuel system
FASTEST LAP:
Kimi Raikkonen Finland Lotus-Renault 56 1:29.274
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