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The Australian GP has been a part of the F1 calendar for more than two decades now. The race, held at Albert Park, has been home to some great moments throughout the years. As the F1 juggernaut descends on the circuit, it will be hoping to create a few more this weekend.
In this piece, let's take a look at some of these memorable moments from the Australian GP
#5 Kimi Raikkonen holds off Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel to win the 2013 Australian GP
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The Lotus years for Kimi Raikkonen were arguably the peak years of his popularity. Every podium of his was cheered, and every result was appreciated. When the Iceman pulled out a win, however, it was a massive event. Raikkonen had returned to Lotus in 2012 alongside Romain Grosjean. The Finnish driver shocked everyone with the level of his performance on his return to F1.
The highest point of his season? Abu Dhabi GP 2012, where the Finn fended off Fernando Alonso to win the race. At the start of the 2013 season, there was no clarity on how the pecking order was going to stack up. As it turned out, Raikkonen, with a tire-friendly driving style, was able to gain the upper hand in his battle against Alonso and Sebastian Vettel by pitting one less time for new tires.
In the end, the Finn was able to cruise home with a very popular win in the very first race of the season.
#4 Mark Webber's points-scoring debut in a Minardi (2002 Australian GP)
Not many people remember the 2002 F1 season. It was in the middle of the dominant Michael Schumacher-Ferrari era and the German driver picked up wins and pole positions for fun during that time. At the time, however, one Australian driver made a remarkable debut with the less fancied Minardi.
The Australian? Well, he was Mark Webber. He made his way into F1 with Minardi, a team just scraping by with a car that he found very hard to fit in. When it came to racing in front of his home fans, however, none of this mattered. Webber, who qualified 18th in the Minardi, was able to make the most of the first lap retirements to push through and finish fifth in the race.
That Webber was able to score points in a Minardi in his debut race at home made him an overnight sensation in Australia afterwards.
#3 Jenson Button wins his first race for McLaren (2010 Australian GP)
The ecosystem of F1 was quite different in 2010. Jenson Button was the reigning world champion as he moved from Brawn to McLaren. According to many pundits around the paddock, the move was a career suicide as he was going to be Lewis Hamilton's teammate.
Not one to get bogged down by the naysayers, Button, however, picked up what would be a spectacular win for him at the Australian GP (the second race of the season at the time). In a race that was affected by rain at the start, Button was the first driver to pit for slicks. This decision will subsequently help him leapfrog multiple drivers and pick up the first win of his McLaren career.
#2 Fernando Alonso's lucky escape (2016 Australian GP)
The 2016 F1 season was one of horror and trepidation for McLaren and Fernando Alonso. McLaren's partnership with Honda had yielded a below-par start to the season the previous year. In 2016, however, the season was supposed to be an improvement as Honda had another year to work on the power unit.
As it turned out, that wasn't the case as McLaren struggled with another year of underperformance. One of its low points came at the start of the season in the Australian GP.
Fernando Alonso, looking to overtake Esteban Gutierrez's Haas into Turn 2, was unable to judge the braking point and ran into the back of the latter's car. What followed was a horrendous crash that sent Alonso cartwheeling into the barriers. The Spaniard fortunately survived the crash and was later seen sitting near the wreck of his McLaren trying to catch a breath. The incident was a harbinger of the kind of rollercoaster year that was going to be in store for the team.
#1 Ralf Schumacher goes airborne (2002 Australian GP)
The 2002 Australian GP (yes, the season no one remembers) features again on our list. This time with a rather graphic accident. It's not often that you see F1 cars being airborne. That was, however, exactly what happened in 2002 when Rubens Barrichello decided to veer left in the path of the Williams of Ralf Schumacher during the start of the race.
The Ferrari driver started the race on pole and made a good start. His initial move to cover the inside line allowed Schumacher space on the outside to slot his Williams. A late move towards the left by Barrichello left Schumacher with nowhere to go as he smashed into the back of the Brazilian's car and went airborne in his Williams.
There aren't many scenarios where an F1 car goes airborne, but this was one of those rather extreme moments.
