F1 Australian GP 2023: Find out the Number of Laps, Weather Forecast, Expected Strategy, and DRS Zones

Formula 1 heads to Australia this upcoming weekend. Except for being canceled for two seasons (2020 and 2021) due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it has been a part of the calendar since 1985. This first edition of the Australian GP, which was held on the Adelaide Street Circuit, was won by Keke Rosberg. The event moved to the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, in 1996. It has been held there ever since.

The current configuration of the Albert Park Circuit features 5.278 km (3.280 miles) of racing action spread along 58 laps. The total race distance, for a normal race, is 306.124 km (190.216 miles). The track surface was recently resurfaced, which means asphalt degradation should not be a very big factor. In this sense, it’s more similar to the Saudi Arabian GP (held on the Jeddah Corniche Circuit), the previous race, than the season-opening Bahrain GP.

The Australian GP, generally, is a popular event amongst the fans. The atmosphere, with the Australian fans, is always electric. Unfortunately for them, this time, their previous main man, Daniel Ricciardo, will not be on the grid, even though he will be in the paddock. However, in his place, they now have Oscar Piastri at McLaren. Piastri was born in Melbourne and grew up near the circuit as well. So, it’s definitely going to be a very special event for him.

How far can he go in front of his home crowd? That question is rather hard to answer. The Australian did very well in Jeddah, particularly in qualifying. He out-qualified his teammate and put the car in P9. Unfortunately, first-lap contact with Pierre Gasly meant he had to dive into the pits to change his front wing. To get his first points at his home race will obviously be incredible – but the McLaren MCL60 has been disappointing, to say the least. It’ll be interesting to see how he fares.

Read More: Watch: F1’s favourite Daniel Ricciardo takes the RB7 for a spin in Australia’s challenging terrain

F1 Australian GP 2023: Weather Forecast

Melbourne gets an average amount of rainfall, with an annual total of around 500mm. No month is truly dry, however, March is one of the ‘drier’ ones. On this occasion, at least some rain is expected to coincide with the weekend. In particular, there is a high chance that it’ll rain on the upcoming Friday afternoon, the 31st, which will feature FP1 and FP2 running. A more detailed version of the forecast, as per the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, is:

Friday, March 31:

The maximum expected temperature is 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit), and the minimum expected temperature is 12 degrees Celsius (53.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Overall, it’ll be party cloudy, and there is a high chance of showers, particularly during the afternoon and evening. The afternoon is when both practice sessions will take place, so rain may hit Albert Park then. Winds northwesterly at 15 to 20 km/h are expected, turning southwesterly during the afternoon. The overall chance of rain is 70 percent.

Saturday, April 1:

The maximum expected temperature is 17 degrees Celsius (62.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and the minimum expected temperature is 12 degrees Celsius (53.6 degrees Fahrenheit). Rain is less likely than on Friday, however, it’ll be cloudier. There is a medium chance of showers, particularly during the morning. This will probably not affect the practice session or qualifying, at least directly. The winds are expected to be southwesterly at 15-20 km/h, turning southerly at 15-25 km/h during the morning. The overall chance of rain is 60 percent.

Sunday, April 2:

The maximum expected temperature is 19 degrees Celsius (66.2 degrees Fahrenheit), and the minimum expected temperature is 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit). It’ll be mostly sunny, but there is a slight chance of a shower. As for the wind forecast, light winds becoming south to southwesterly 15-20 km/h during the morning are expected. The overall chance of rain is 20 percent.

The full schedule for the Australian GP weekend is:

F1 Australian GP 2023: Expected Strategy

The tire choices for the Australian GP will be the same as it was for the Saudi Arabian GP. Teams and drivers will have three Pirelli tire compounds at their disposal: C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium), and C4 (Soft). Apart from the usual allocation of the intermediate and wet tires, of course. Last season, when Charles Leclerc won the race, it was a one-stopper with all teams using the hard and the medium tires. The softs were only used for qualifying, but this may change this time around.

In 2022, the C2, C3, and C5 compounds had been used. Speaking about the tire choices and other factors for this weekend, Pirelli’s Motorsport Director, Mario Isola said: “This weekend, the teams will have the C2, C3, and C4 at their disposal, which means that they have more options for the race in terms of strategy: on paper at least.”

The asphalt is not very abrasive, but it also offers comparatively lower tractions and grip, though the latter has been improved since the resurfacing. For the practice sessions, when rain is expected, this may complicate things for the drivers and make it extra slippery. Tire stress, and downforce required are medium. A high degree of track evolution is expected.

F1 Saudi Arabian GP 2023: DRS Zones

This edition of the Australian GP, should, in theory, be the fastest one yet. There were modifications made to the circuit ahead of last season’s race, which did improve the overall speeds and lap times. Plus, for this year’s race, Albert Park will feature four (!) DRS zones – which is the most of any track on the current F1 calendar. It’ll definitely be interesting to see how this affects the racing.

Part of the modifications made to the track includes the removal of the Turn 9/10 chicane, which gave the organizers freedom to implement a fourth DRS zone between the (new) turn 8 and turn 9. This was the plan last year as well, but following the first practice session, it was removed due to safety reasons. It will be reimplemented for this edition of the race.

There are two detection zones on the track. One will be just before turn 13, two turns before the main straight. The other one will come just after turn 6. The DRS zones will be between:

Zone 1: Between turns 2 and 3.

Zone 2: A bit after turn 8, in the run-up to turn 9.

Zone 3: After turn 9 and 10, until turn 11.

Zone 4: On the main straight, between turn 14 and 1.

In case you missed it:

• “They don’t need to watch it,” Guenther Steiner hits out at detractors of Neftlix’s ‘Drive to Survive’
• Damon Hill: Oscar Piastri looks “solid” unlike Mick Schumacher who ‘struggled to inspire confidence’

Stay Updated!

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW