Ferrari will have work to do on the F2012 in Melbourne

Fernando Alonso is eager for the season to start. The Spanish driver believes there is no better place than Melbourne to kick off this new F1 season: « I always love coming to this city (Melbourne). The atmosphere is very special, and there is a feeling of relaxation and ease that you don’t find anywhere else in the world. Australians seem to have found the recipe for a good life. Of course, they have problems like everyone else, and actually, it’s hard for us to judge during a visit that only lasts 10 days a year, but that’s the impression I get. But for now, I can’t wait for this first race weekend to begin. »

Shared sentiment by Felipe Massa, the Brazilian driver acknowledges that he appreciates the atmosphere and the climate in Melbourne: « I love this city. There’s a pleasant climate, warm as I like it: today it was over 30 degrees, a temperature similar to Sao Paulo. The fans are also very enthusiastic, and it’s always nice to see Ferrari flags in the stands, which are as packed as in few other circuits. »

The double Spanish world champion is eager to get back behind the wheel of the F2012 because he feels he hasn’t had enough time to drive it during pre-season tests: « This year, we’ve had even less time than usual to drive the car, given that the pre-season tests have been reduced: six days are not enough to satisfy my need to drive! I’ve said it many times in the past, our sport is the only one in which training is forbidden. Imagine asking Nadal to try a new racket for only six days or a soccer player to train only six times before the World Cup! It would be nice to have a bit more testing, but not at the expense of races, because nothing beats competition. »

Felipe Massa is also eagerly waiting to get back in his single-seater and drive on the Albert Park Circuit: « I can’t wait for the season to start, and I believe this feeling is shared by all my fellow drivers. We miss the competition like never before as race drivers, and six days of testing are not enough to satisfy our desire to race. »

But the Ferrari drivers will have their work cut out in Melbourne as the winter tests have not been very conclusive: In fact, after so many test kilometers, there is a whiff of F1 in the air. I miss the excitement of qualifying, the thrill of being on the starting grid waiting for the lights to go out, the adrenaline rush approaching the first corner, in fact, I miss everything that makes F1. It is always difficult to draw conclusions from the tests. Everyone works according to their own program, and you cannot make real comparisons. We clearly still have a lot of improvement to do, working on our understanding of the F2012, adapting my driving style to the new car which, with the loss of rear aerodynamic downforce and the new Pirelli tires, is more challenging to drive.

Massa agrees with Alonso on this point, the Brazilian acknowledged that the Ferrari team had done little work on the F2012’s setup during the six test days, so they will have to do so during the three free practice sessions in Australia: « We were only able to work on the F2012’s setup during the last two days with Fernando. I remain convinced that this car has great potential: we just need to find a way to extract the maximum. We hope to start that this weekend at Albert Park! »

Fernando Alonso does not yet know where Ferrari stands in relation to its rivals, and according to him, everyone should have a first indication of the hierarchy at the end of the qualifying session on Saturday. But it may be necessary to wait for the return to Europe to confirm this: We know in which direction we need to go in terms of car development, and that is an important step. Obviously, we will have to grit our teeth during the first races, but first, we need to wait to see where we are in terms of competitiveness and then score as many points as possible at the start of the championship. I know fans always expect to hear me say that we can achieve such and such results, but the truth is that we cannot say with certainty where we are. We have to wait until Saturday evening at 6 PM, after the qualifying session, and a little longer, until the end of these few races outside Europe. »

Massa shares the same opinion as his teammate on this point: « I am very curious to see how things will unfold here in Melbourne. I believe it has never been as difficult as this year to get an accurate idea of the situation based only on winter testing: we’ll start to get an idea of the truth on Saturday afternoon during qualifying when we are all in the same conditions. »

Lacking knowledge of where Ferrari stands, Fernando Alonso does not want to venture any prediction before this season’s first Grand Prix: « We must remain calm and serene and take each step one by one, starting with the race in Melbourne where we will have a first impression. Once we know where we stand, then we can set more precise goals. What is certain, with the will to win that inhabits every Ferrari employee and with the history we have behind us, we have the duty to do well: for ourselves, for our fans, and for our partners, and this applies to everyone. We must do everything possible to achieve this goal. »

Felipe Massa is more talkative on the subject. He thinks that the F2012 could be able to fight for the podium in Australia: « I already said it last week in Sao Paulo: in my mind, I have the feeling that we can fight for the podium, but that doesn’t mean I disagree with what Pat Fry said in Barcelona. I know perfectly well that the tests did not go as we hoped because we had very ambitious performance goals. This costs us precious time and also a bit of performance. »

But the Albert Park circuit is a tricky course to negotiate, and according to Massa, if the weather plays a role, it could complicate things even further, as rain could appear on Friday and thus limit the teams’ dry practice sessions to prepare for qualifying and the race. According to weather forecasts, tomorrow evening it should cool down a bit and there may be a little rain on Friday, but the track should remain dry for Saturday and Sunday. During this year’s testing, we had very little time to drive on a wet track; it was on my last day in Barcelona, so it’s difficult to have a precise idea of the car’s behavior in these conditions.

The Paulista driver would like to break his bad Australian streak by securing a good result this weekend, but he is aware that he will certainly face strong competition: « I have never had much luck on the Albert Park circuit. I have only managed to finish the race in the points three times out of my nine participations in the Australian Grand Prix. In one of them, I finished on the third step of the podium, that was two years ago. It would be fantastic to do the same, but I know it will be difficult. There’s a very strong field; it’s not just about Red Bull and McLaren. Other teams, from Mercedes to Lotus, including Force India and Toro Rosso, could also have their say. »