2014 Australian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Nico Rosberg won the opening race of Formula 1’s turbo-hybrid era in Melbourne. Mercedes‘ speed was clear, but Lewis Hamilton retired early, and Daniel Ricciardo‘s later disqualification promoted debutant Kevin Magnussen into second place.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes
Pole time	1:44.231
Fastest lap	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Fastest-lap time	1:32.478 on lap 19
First	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Second	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren
Third	Jenson Button	McLaren

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
14 March 2014	Practice 1	12:30 – 14:00
14 March 2014	Practice 2	16:30 – 18:00
15 March 2014	Practice 3	14:00 – 15:00
15 March 2014	Qualifying	17:00
16 March 2014	Race	17:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

The 2014 F1 World Championship began with a fresh points table and the first opportunity to measure the teams in race conditions. Albert Park Circuit hosted the opening contest, where qualifying pace, tyre management and reliability would all shape the result.

Race entries

Kevin Magnussen joined McLaren, Daniil Kvyat made his debut with Toro Rosso and Marcus Ericsson started his first Grand Prix for Caterham. Daniel Ricciardo moved to Red Bull, Felipe Massa to Williams and Kimi Räikkönen returned to Ferrari alongside Fernando Alonso.

Free Practice

Fernando Alonso led FP1 as the new hybrid era began with sharply contrasting levels of reliability. Lewis Hamilton stopped almost immediately after a sensor triggered an engine shutdown, while Lotus and Caterham struggled to complete meaningful running. Red Bull gradually built mileage after its difficult winter, giving Daniel Ricciardo an encouraging start at home.

Lewis Hamilton returned to lead FP2 as Mercedes began to show its strength. Most teams completed useful longer runs to assess fuel consumption and tyre wear, but Lotus and Caterham remained badly restricted. Nico Hülkenberg ended in the gravel late on, and Romain Grosjean also ran off after clipping a wall.

Nico Rosberg set a commanding FP3 pace while reliability continued to disrupt others. Valtteri Bottas managed only two laps before major repairs, Romain Grosjean struggled with a misfire, and Esteban Gutiérrez reported gearbox trouble. Sebastian Vettel also complained of poor drivability, leaving several teams with unresolved problems immediately before the season’s first qualifying session.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2014 Australian Grand Prix FP1, 14 March 2014

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:31.840	20
2	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.517s	23
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+0.563s	27
4	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+0.591s	19
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.759s	26
6	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.764s	17
7	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.953s	10
8	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	+1.007s	28
9	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+1.137s	19
10	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+1.606s	30
11	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.693s	23
12	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+2.015s	24
13	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+2.432s	27
14	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	+3.738s	7
15	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	+4.605s	13
16	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	+9.019s	6
17	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	+15.082s	4
18	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	No time	1
19	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	No time	1
20	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	No time	1
21	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	No time	2

Free Practice 2 Classification

2014 Australian Grand Prix FP2, 14 March 2014

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:29.625	37
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.157s	31
3	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.507s	28
4	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.756s	41
5	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.885s	33
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.913s	38
7	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+1.273s	32
8	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+1.295s	38
9	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	+1.406s	34
10	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.429s	33
11	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+1.435s	35
12	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+1.494s	31
13	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+1.658s	36
14	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	+2.730s	36
15	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	+2.843s	26
16	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+2.870s	36
17	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	+3.861s	29
18	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+4.021s	12
19	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	+5.132s	29
20	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	No time	1

Free Practice 3 Classification

2014 Australian Grand Prix FP3, 15 March 2014

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:29.375	15
2	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.391s	20
3	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+1.501s	11
4	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+1.544s	13
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.595s	13
6	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.603s	16
7	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+1.781s	12
8	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	+1.876s	22
9	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+2.290s	17
10	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+2.348s	20
11	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+2.550s	17
12	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+2.880s	14
13	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+3.042s	16
14	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	+4.809s	15
15	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	+4.813s	16
16	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	+5.038s	19
17	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	+5.342s	15
18	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	+5.379s	15
19	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	+6.784s	21
20	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	No time	2
21	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	No time	2
22	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	No time	4

Qualifying

Qualifying used three knockout sessions lasting eighteen, fifteen and twelve minutes. Drivers progressed through Q1 and Q2 before the final ten competed for pole in Q3.

Lewis Hamilton took pole in wet conditions, with Daniel Ricciardo splitting the Mercedes cars in second. Sebastian Vettel missed Q3, while Pastor Maldonado failed to set a time during a difficult debut weekend for the new power units.

Qualifying Classification

2014 Australian Grand Prix Qualifying, 15 March 2014

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:31.699	1:42.890	1:44.231	22
2	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	1:30.775	1:42.295	1:44.548	20
3	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:32.564	1:42.264	1:44.595	21
4	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	1:30.949	1:43.247	1:45.745	19
5	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:31.388	1:42.805	1:45.819	21
6	25	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	1:33.488	1:43.849	1:45.864	21
7	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:33.893	1:43.658	1:46.030	20
8	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	1:33.777	1:44.331	1:47.368	20
9	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	1:31.228	1:44.242	1:48.079	21
10	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	1:31.601	1:43.852	1:48.147	19
11	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:31.396	1:44.437	—	13
12	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:32.439	1:44.494	—	13
13	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:31.931	1:44.668	—	13
14	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	1:33.673	1:45.655	—	12
15	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	1:34.274	1:45.867	—	13
16	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	1:34.141	1:47.293	—	13
17	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	1:34.293	—	—	5
18	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	1:34.794	—	—	5
19	21	Esteban Gutiérrez	Sauber	1:35.117	—	—	7
20	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	1:35.157	—	—	5
21	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	1:36.993	—	—	6
NC	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	No time	—	—	3

Valtteri Bottas and Esteban Gutiérrez were given a five-place grid penalty for changing their gearboxes.

Driver started the race from pit lane.

Pastor Maldonado failed to set a lap time within 107% of the fastest lap time set by Daniel Ricciardo in Q1. He was later given permission to start by race stewards.

What happened in the 2014 Australian Grand Prix?

Rosberg made the best start and took the lead as Hamilton’s engine lost power. Hamilton soon retired, as did Vettel, while a brake failure for Kamui Kobayashi caused a first-corner collision that eliminated Felipe Massa too.

Rosberg steadily pulled away from Ricciardo and Magnussen. Valtteri Bottas damaged a tyre against the wall but recovered through the field, while both Lotus cars eventually retired with power-unit problems.

Ricciardo crossed the line second in front of his home crowd, but was disqualified for exceeding the permitted fuel-flow rate. The amended classification promoted Magnussen to second and Jenson Button to third, giving McLaren a double podium.

Fernando Alonso finished fourth in the official result, ahead of Bottas and Nico Hülkenberg. Kvyat scored on debut, while Rosberg’s commanding victory gave Mercedes an early championship lead in the new technical era.

Further down the points places, Kimi Räikkönen, Jean-Éric Vergne, Daniil Kvyat and Sergio Pérez completed the scoring positions. Nico Rosberg set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2014 rules.

After the race, Nico Rosberg headed the drivers’ standings with 25 points, followed by Kevin Magnussen on 18. McLaren led the constructors’ table on 33, with Mercedes on 25.

2014 Australian Grand Prix race results

The 2014 Australian Grand Prix was held on 16 March 2014, with a scheduled start of 17:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	57	1:32:58.710	25
2	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	57	+26.777	18
3	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	57	+30.027	15
4	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	57	+35.284	12
5	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	57	+47.639	10
6	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	57	+50.718	8
7	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	57	+57.675	6
8	25	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	57	+1:00.441	4
9	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	57	+1:03.585	2
10	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	57	+1:25.916	1
11	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	56	+1 Lap	0
12	21	Esteban Gutiérrez	Sauber	56	+1 Lap	0
13	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	55	+2 Laps	0
NC	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	49	+8 Laps	0
Ret	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	43	Electrical	0
Ret	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	29	Electrical	0
Ret	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	27	Oil pressure	0
Ret	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	3	Engine	0
Ret	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	2	Engine	0
Ret	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	0	Collision	0
Ret	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham	0	Brakes/Collision	0
DSQ	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	57	Illegal fuel meter	0

Jules Bianchi did not complete 90% of the race distance, and therefore is not classified as a finisher in the official results.

Daniel Ricciardo originally finished second, but was disqualified for breaching the maximum fuel limit and using an unauthorised method of measuring fuel consumption.

2014 Australian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time of Day	Time	Avg. Speed
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	19	17:41:08	1:32.478	206.436
2	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	56	18:40:12	1:32.568	206.235
3	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	56	18:39:59	1:32.616	206.128
4	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	38	18:12:04	1:32.634	206.088
5	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren	39	18:13:18	1:32.917	205.460
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	49	18:28:56	1:33.066	205.131
7	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	57	18:41:29	1:33.186	204.867
8	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	56	18:40:16	1:33.210	204.814
9	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	34	18:06:02	1:33.366	204.472
10	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	56	18:40:22	1:33.691	203.763
11	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	35	18:07:13	1:33.864	203.387
12	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber	33	18:04:43	1:34.202	202.658
13	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber	41	18:17:21	1:34.564	201.882
14	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	30	17:59:44	1:34.766	201.451
15	17	Jules Bianchi	Marussia	41	18:29:40	1:35.281	200.363
16	4	Max Chilton	Marussia	55	18:41:21	1:35.635	199.621
17	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham	26	17:53:36	1:37.064	196.682
18	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	17	17:38:16	1:37.332	196.141
19	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	2	17:11:27	1:40.287	190.361
20	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	2	17:11:51	1:49.947	173.636

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded. Time of Day is local.

2014 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2014 Australian Grand Prix.

2014 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	25
2	Kevin Magnussen	Danish	McLaren	18
3	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	15
4	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	12
5	Valtteri Bottas	Finnish	Williams	10
6	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	8
7	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Ferrari	6
8	Jean-Éric Vergne	French	Toro Rosso	4
9	Daniil Kvyat	Russian	Toro Rosso	2
10	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Force India	1
11	Adrian Sutil	German	Sauber	0
12	Esteban Gutiérrez	Mexican	Sauber	0
13	Max Chilton	British	Marussia	0
–	Jules Bianchi	French	Marussia	0
–	Romain Grosjean	French	Lotus F1	0
–	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Lotus F1	0
–	Marcus Ericsson	Swedish	Caterham	0
–	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	0
–	Lewis Hamilton	British	Mercedes	0
–	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Williams	0
–	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Caterham	0
–	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Red Bull Racing	0

2014 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	McLaren	33
2	Mercedes	25
3	Ferrari	18
4	Williams	10
5	Force India	9
6	Toro Rosso	6
7	Sauber	0
8	Marussia	0
–	Lotus F1	0
–	Caterham	0
–	Red Bull Racing	0

2014 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2014 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	16 March
2	2014 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	30 March
3	2014 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	6 April
4	2014 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	20 April
5	2014 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	11 May
6	2014 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	25 May
7	2014 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	8 June
8	2014 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	22 June
9	2014 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	6 July
10	2014 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	20 July
11	2014 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	27 July
12	2014 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	24 August
13	2014 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	7 September
14	2014 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	21 September
15	2014 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	5 October
16	2014 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	12 October
17	2014 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	2 November
18	2014 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	9 November
19	2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	23 November