06 March: Australian Grand Prix - Race Report - Williams BMW
Weather:
Dry, overcast. Temp: Air 19-21°C, Track 24-28°C
The BMW WilliamsF1 Team collected four points today in the season opening
Australian Grand Prix. Mark Webber today equalled his best ever Grand Prix finish, achieving 5th place again at the Albert Park
circuit, just as in 2002. Team-mate Nick Heidfeld was involved in an unfortunate accident with Michael Schumacher with 15 laps to
go, which put an early end to his race.
Mark Webber: 5th Chassis: FW27 03 - Best time: 1:26.493 min (lap 37, 8h
overall) Coming 5th is not a bad start at all, but I think that we actually had an opportunity for a better result today. I lost
one position to Coulthard at the first corner, when I was looking after my tyres and trying not to lock my wheels. After that I was
stuck behind him, which was a bit frustrating. We have put the first race behind us and we have learned a lot about the car and the
tyres. The car has proved to be reliable and this is very important.
Nick Heidfeld: DNF (accident at lap 42)
Chassis: FW27 04 - Best time: 1:26.854min (lap 38, 12th overall) I gained two places at the start and then had a good first stint
in fifth position, but after the first pit-stop I got stuck behind Trulli and Klien and couldn't do much. With regards to the
accident with Michael I think that I made a good move. Michael just came out of the pits and obviously he had a bad exit from the
first chicane because he wasn't on the ideal line. I went alongside him and I could have out-braked him but he didn't leave me any
space and pushed me on to the grass, where braking is obviously impossible. Apart from this unfortunate end to my race, we had a
good weekend here, probably better than expected and Mark finished in the points.
Sam Michael (Technical Director
WilliamsF1): It is good to come away with some points, which is the most important thing. It is a shame that we could not get
some more. We certainly were fast enough to score 2 or 3 more, however, it's only the first race of a long season. Mark drove a good
race and Nick did too until his incident with Michael. We are looking forward to the Malaysian Grand Prix now to where we will bring
some more performance to the car. The Michelin tyres were solid for the whole race.
Mario Theissen (BMW Motorsport
Director): Today a better result was within possibilities. Compared to the competitors, our lap times were ok, but in the course
of the race luck was not really on our side. Both drivers got stuck in traffic and eventually lost positions. The accident of Nick
and Michael Schumacher was unfortunate too. Over the course of the weekend we experienced no technical problems. According to the
regulations Nick will now get a fresh engine for the Malaysian Grand Prix. The engine of Mark's car will be sealed and transported
to Sepang.
Weather: dry, slightly overcast. Air 16-17°C, Track 21-26°C
Mark Webber and Nick Heidfeld
will start from 3rd and 7th grid positions respectively for today's Australian Grand Prix, the first race of the 2005 FIA F1 World
Championship. This means the team managed to place one car on the second row for the season's opener, with Mark Webber even setting
the fastest time today in the second qualifying session. The grid positions came out of the new qualifying format, which involves
the aggregation of the times from Saturday's first session and Sunday morning's second and final session.
Driver Qualifying
Saturday Qualifying Sunday Final Position / Aggregate Time Webber 3rd / 1:36.717 1st / 1:28.279 3rd / 3:04.996 Heidfeld 15th /
1:39.717 6th / 1.29.413 7th / 3:09.130
Mark Webber: Chassis: FW27 03 (T-car FW27 02) Starting my first race for
the BMW WilliamsF1 Team from the second row is great. I went out under fortunate conditions yesterday, for my first qualifying, and
that played an important role in today's result. The balance of my car was pretty good today and our aero package seems ok. Also,
the track improved considerably throughout the session, which helped. Still, it will be a long race this afternoon and we will learn
a lot, especially about tyres.
Nick Heidfeld: Chassis: FW27 04 I had quite a good lap, today, it was good fun. It
was quite difficult to go out this morning with a completely different fuel load and under weather and track conditions very
different from yesterday. Both Mark and myself are in good grid positions. Now I am looking forward to the race.
Sam
Michael (Technical Director, WilliamsF1): The qualifying brought nothing different to what we expected in terms of positions
with Mark staying third and Nick remaining seventh. Mark did the fastest lap time of this session, which was an impressive effort.
But the race is now the most important thing and we are looking forward to a long and interesting Grand Prix.
Mario
Theissen (BMW Motorsport Director): Unlike yesterday's first qualifying session the second qualifying ended with no big
surprises - regarding the first 15 positions. Today Mark achieved the fastest lap and remained third on the grid and Nick did not
have a problem to defend his seventh position. We should be well prepared for the race.
