Red Bullseye - Aussi GP gossip

It was a strange experience having the Australian Grand Prix as the third race on the calendar. Gone was the first-day-of-school atmosphere, to be replaced with a feeling that the Melbourne event actually brought the first hectic sixth of the season to a close. The Australian city always puts on a warm welcome for the F1 people, but even so, a lot of our team members were looking forward to returning home to their families after over a month on the road, since heading out for the curtain raiser in Bahrain.

The F1 engine rules have come in for some criticism over the past few races and again on Sunday in Melbourne, the logic of dropping ten places down the grid if you have an engine problem was called into question. Jenson Button’s Honda exploded in spectacular style on the very last of the 57 laps of Albert Park and the Englishman pulled over in sight of the chequered flag. If he’d kept going, he might have salvaged some points, or even made it to third place on the podium. But then, come the San Marino GP in three weeks time and he would have to drop ten places on the grid for changing the engine. However, because he chose not to cross the finish line in Oz, he can start the next round of the championship with a new engine and without any penalty. Go figure?

Of course it was the Button retirement that gifted a point for eighth place to Red Bull’s David Coulthard, although our Scotsman had to wait until the point was taken away from Scuderia Toro Rosso’s Scott Speed, as the Stewards decided that the American had overtaken DC under yellow flags being waved coincidentally enough because of Liuzzi having parked his Toro Rosso car in the barriers. Cue lots of argy bargy, raised voices and some rude words!

First off, Tonio felt he had been unfairly pushed off the road by Jacques Villeneuve and after the race, the Italian stomped off to Race Control to make his feelings known. It was one of those situations that was too close to call and no action was taken against the Canadian BMW driver.

Even more heated was the dispute between Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso. As Button’s car sent a smoke screen across the track, everyone in the Rosso garage realised it promoted Speed to eighth, the place that is worth the final point on offer. But he was then summoned to the Stewards office as officials had decided that the American rookie had passed Coulthard under the yellows. Both parties put their point of view and at one point an emotional Scott apparently suggested that David might like to go somewhere and partake in sexual intercourse! The Stewards took a dim view of things and fined Scott US$5000 for using rude language, as well as handing the point to David.

If you believe there is no such thing as bad publicity, then it’s fair to say that both Red Bull related teams got more than their fare of media coverage over the weekend. But just to make one point (no pun intended) clear, Red Bull Racing did not lodge a protest against Scott Speed. The Stewards had reached their own decision about his passing move on Coulthard.