The fourth race of the 2011 Formula One season proved to be an exciting, if not slightly contrived, race after all was said and done. The defending World Driver’s Champion, Sebastian Vettel, for Red Bull Racing took the checkered flag in what looked like an effortless and perfectly executed weekend. Behind Sebastian Vettel the results were slightly different from what we had seen in the previous 3 races. Missing from this round were the initial (and surprising) pace of McLaren and Renault as well as the problems at Mercedes and Ferrari. While the front of the pack was reshuffled a bit, the back of the pack looked about the same with a few exceptions, including a sublime drive from a driver who’s stock must certainly be on the rise.

Red Bull Racing was finally able to lock out the top two positions in qualifying, although Webber was no match for Vettel in qualifying, or in the race for that matter. Vettel truly seems to be in a class of his own at the moment. Nico Rosberg was able to hoist his improving Mercedes GP car to the third step of the podium with Lewis Hamilton’s McLaren and Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari rounding out the top five in qualifying. Behind the top five were the usual players in their usual order (with some slight shuffling here and there). One exception was Kamui Kobayashi who’s Sauber failed to set a qualifying time and resulted in Kobayashi starting at the back of the grid. Luckily for Kobayashi he had posted times in practice well within 107% of the quickest time set in the first qualifying period which prompted the race stewards to allow him to start despite not setting a time.

The race start was rather tidy and saw a few position changes throughout the field mostly due to the differences in grip from the two starting lanes. Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was finally able to get a good start and found himself not losing places as he has done in the previous races this season. One interesting insight I read after the race was in regards to the lack of chaos and crashes that have typically accompanied Grand Prix starts. The author surmised that with the passing opportunities afforded by the Drag Reduction System (DRS), Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) and the Pirelli tires this season the driver’s no longer feel the desperation they once did to make up places at the start of the race. With the various changes this season, it seems the drivers are willing to wait and see how the various strategies play out in favor of trying to squeeze a rocketing F1 car into a tiny gap through the first corner. The result of this is that cars are no longer being taken out in first corner melees this season, which results in more cars battling throughout the race.

The race itself was a combination of confusing strategic wrangling and pointless “push to pass” scenarios using the Drag Reduction System (DRS). One exception to all of this was Kamui Kobayashi’s fantastic drive from dead last to finally ending up 10th and securing a Championship point for himself and Sauber. The usual players found themselves in more or less their usual places by the time the race ended. Sebastian Vettel drove a faultless race from Pole Position to the top step of podium. The Red Bull of Mark Webber finished second after battling Alonso’s ascendant Ferrari throughout the race finding themselves trading places a couple of times courtesy of the DRS “push to pass” button and tire degradation differences. A Red Bull 1-2 followed up with Ferrari finally capitalizing on their consistently high race pace rounded out the podium. The rest of the field crossed the line in the expected order with Renault, McLaren and Mercedes GP trading places to fill in the rest of the top 10 with Sebastian Buemi’s Torro Rosso and Kamui Kobayashi’s Sauber being the major exceptions.

The true star of this race was, and typically is, the Istanbul Park circuit. Like most great circuits there is one defining feature that sets them apart from the rest and in Istanbul this is Turn 8. Watching Formula One cars pull over 4Gs for 4-5 seconds while speeding around this 3-4 apex turn is phenomenal. Unfortunately the nature of this great track was slightly overshadowed by the contrived manner of passing being created by some of the rule changes this season. Particularly the Drag Reduction System (DRS). Perhaps a change in the DRS zone’s location or length could have alleviated some of the ridiculously easy passes we saw, but altogether this system is beginning to irritate some spectators, myself included. In season’s past when one driver passed another it meant something in the overall battle for the season’s championship. With the DRS the passes are no more meaningful than the ones we all make on our daily commutes. I would have rather seen the DRS zone moved between turns 7 and 8. Imagine the courage and skill required to effect a pass while setting up to go through turn 8! Now that would be a spectacle.

After an extended winter break, courtesy of political unrest in Bahrain, the 2011 Formula One season got off to a great start in Melbourne, Australia. The usual suspects were back in top form with reigning champions Red Bull Racing leading McLaren, Scuderia Ferrari and Lotus Renault in qualifying.

Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing started on pole, led nearly every lap, and finished in first place to continue where he left off after winning the World Driver’s Championship in 2010. His teammate, Mark Webber did not fare so well in his home race managing to secure 5th place despite starting a promising 3rd. McLaren looked much more their speedy selves in the race compared to winter testing with Lewis Hamilton finishing second and Jenson Button putting in a strong performance despite managing only a 6th place finish likely due to a drive-through penalty incurred after passing Felipe Massa’s Ferrari off track. Fernando Alonso qualified well for Ferrari in 5th. A lack lustre start found Alonso falling from 5th to 9th place after the dust settled from the start. Fernando Alonso put in an impressive drive to eventually claw his way back to an impressive 4th place by the end of the race. His Ferrari teammate likewise gained a single position throughout the race to finish 7th. One standout from the usual players at the front of the grid was Lotus Renault’s Vitaly Petrov. A phenomenal start and flawless race landed Vitally on the 3rd step of the podium, a first for Vitaly, a first for a Russian and undoubtedly a relief for Lotus Renault whose championship dreams were surely being questioned with the (hopefully temporary) loss of Robert Kubica in an unrelated rally accident during winter testing.

The anticipation leading up to the race was heightened due to the rule changes enacted for the 2011 season. As is usually the case with each new season a number of changes to the rules that govern F1 have been enacted in the name of safety, cost-savings and the ever elusive goal of increasing overtaking in F1. For the 2011 season, two rules stand out and have been the topic of much debate in the off season. New for 2011 is the Drag Reduction System (DRS) and the re-introduction of the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), both of which aim to make overtaking easier.

The new DRS has been implemented to aid a following cars ability to overtake another at the end of a long straight. In my opinion this system is contrived and will most likely be relegated to the waste bin in the near future. The DRS is an artificial means to correct a problem that not everyone agrees even exists. There has long been a debate in F1 circles that it is too difficult for one car to overtake another in F1. While many casual observers (read: new, lucrative TV eyeballs) may find the apparent lack of overtaking boring the seasoned fan appreciates the difficulty and marvels at the skill and craftsmanship required to overtake in an F1 car. Time will tell if the DRS is successful or not, but I am not betting on it.

The second major technological change for this year is the re-inclusion of KERS. While KERS was available last year, the teams had all agreed not to use it. There are many reasons for the exclusion of this technology from last year’s cars, but I am glad that it is back for 2011. KERS allows the cars to store otherwise wasted kinetic energy in onboard batteries in order to provide 6 seconds worth of an additional 80 BPH per lap. I for one applaud the inclusion of this technology, but I am truly at a loss as to why the FIA has placed such strict limits on it’s application. For me Formula One is a wondrous mixture of technological wizardry and sublime driving skill. Placing limits on KERS only limits what the engineers and drivers in F1 are capable of. If left unchecked they would be able to extract enormous amounts of power from the kinetic energy of the car and would certainly be able to produce more than a mere 6 seconds of it per lap. I know that the limits have been put in place to save money, but I would rather see money saved in other areas to allow KERS to truly blossom.

All in all the season is off to an exciting start. The players are the same at the top and only time will tell if their order will follow from last year as well. Red Bull Racing look dominant, but McLaren, Ferrari and Lotus Renault do not seem too far off. As with every F1 season there are two races happening simultaneously, the race to develop one’s car at a blistering pace in hopes of outdoing one another on a technical level and the race between the drivers on the track on Sunday. Therein lies the true magic of F1, the combination of driving skill and engineering excellence.