2008 Australian Grand Prix

Entrants

Fernando Alonso returns to Renault after a single season at McLaren, replaced by Heikki Kovalainen, who moves in the opposite direction. Sébastien Bourdais makes his Formula One debut for Toro Rosso, having won four consecutive Champ Car titles. Timo Glock starts his first race for Toyota, having won the 2007 GP2 title. Renault line up Bourdais’s predecessor at Toro Rosso, Vitantonio Liuzzi, has moved to Force India as test driver; Nelson Piquet Jr. takes Fisichella’s former Renault seat, while Fisichella himself moves to Force India.

Milestones

This is the first Formula One race since the 2001 San Marino Grand Prix not to feature traction control, which was banned by the FIA at the end of last season.

Practice

Räikkönen set the pace in the first session with a 1:26.461, four-tenths clear of Hamilton and Massa. Piquet Jr. caused a brief red flag by spinning at the Ascari corner. Hamilton reversed the order in FP2, clocking 1:26.559 with Webber second and the Ferraris third and sixth. Teams switched to soft tyres for the final session, and BMW Sauber capitalised — Kubica and Heidfeld went first and second, with Alonso third and Rosberg fourth.