What's at stake in Australia?

After the opening two races of the 2006 season, the Renault F1 Team is looking strong: the team has scored 28 points out of 36 possible and taken two wins, including the manufacturer’s first one-two finish for 24 years in Malaysia. It’s therefore logical that the blue and yellow cars are favourites again in Melbourne, with McLaren, Honda, Ferrari and others chasing hard behind them.

In spite of suffering reliability issues during winter testing, the McLarens looked strong in Bahrain, where Kimi Raikkonen drove from the back of the grid to third at the chequered flag. A week later, though, the MP4/21 seemed to struggle: Juan Pablo Montoya lost out to Jenson Button’s Honda in the battle for a podium spot.

At Honda, the mood is expectant. The 2006 car’s performance didn’t live up to expectations after promising results during the winter. It has been quick enough to fight for the podium – but not right at the sharp end. They are trying to understand why. However, Melbourne could be a circuit to suit them – as long as the reliability allows them. At Sepang, Rubens Barrichello had an anonymous race from the back of the field after an engine change.

Ferrari are the real unknown factors this weekend. Equipped with new wings after objections from their rivals two weeks ago, they may have lost some performance. But Melbourne’s unusual demands could mask this handicap…

Of course, there are then two teams that could spring a surprise. Toyota first of all, which believes it has solved the problems it experienced with getting its tyres working properly. And then Williams. Although both cars retired with mechanical problems in Sepang, they looked strong in qualifying. Plus, Mark Webber will be racing at home. He’ll be one to watch out for…