Unforgettable memories of Albert Park
Formula One heads back to Albert Park in Melbourne for the 26th time in 2023, and whether serving as the season opener or an early spring-time thriller Down Under, the race in Melbourne has provided our Team with some unforgettable memories.
It's time to look back at our top five memorable Mercedes moments at the Australian Grand Prix.
The beginning of something special. Lewis' decision to switch to our Team at the end of 2012 had been met by some questions from those in the media, but a strong P3 showing in Qualifying behind the Red Bulls showed the early potential in the W04.
While the P5 result may not have been indicative of the years to come, the start of the most successful driver-team partnership in Formula 1 had begun. 202 races, 82 wins, 77 poles and six world championships later, it's fair to say the move to Brackley was the right one for Lewis.
A new era dawned on Formula 1 at Albert Park in 2014, as the series ran with 1.6 litre turbocharged V6 'Power Units' for the first time, giving the cars a different look and feel to get used to for the drivers. The Silver Arrows looked to lay down a marker for the season ahead, and duly did so as Lewis took his 32nd career pole and sixth for Mercedes in Qualifying.
While the Briton's race would unfortunately last only two laps, team-mate Nico Rosberg came through to take the flag first and become Formula 1's first victor of the new era. It would prove to be the first of 16 wins for our Brackley Team that season, as Nico and Lewis' battle for the championship went down to the final race.
Lewis' career in Formula 1 and with our Team has been littered landmarks and milestones, and a major one arrived in Melbourne in 2016. Coming off a second title with our Team the season before, the then three-time World Champion took advantage of a new knockout qualifying format to claim a 50th pole position of his career, a number which only two men - Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna - had achieved at the time.
It was a record-extending fifth pole at the circuit for Lewis (he has since gone on to record eight) with team-mate Rosberg a further 0.3 seconds back in second.
After a difficult finish to the 2018 season, Valtteri Bottas came out of the blocks flying in 2019, dominating the opening race from first lap to last Down Under. The Finn had been beaten by Lewis in qualifying, but once he had pipped the five-time World Champion to the first corner, he never looked back, and duly recorded his fourth win with our Team 58 laps later by over 20 seconds.
The drive was pure Flying Finn, the now infamous radio message post-race beginning 'To Who It May Concern' was pure Finnish Fire. The one-two was our Team's 45th in Formula 1, as Lewis completed the Mercedes lock out in Melbourne.
After a solid and consistent start to his Mercedes career, George picked up his first piece of Silverware as a Silver Arrow in Melbourne after a measured drive saw him reach the podium at Albert Park. The third-placed finish was George's first of eight in 2022 and saw him continue his consistent run of top-five finishes that would eventually stretch to the first nine races of the campaign.
The second trophy of the season was a welcome and deserved one for our Team, as it highlighted the determination and effort being shown by all those in Brackley and Brixworth through an up and down start to the year in the W13.