BMW Sauber F1 Team Third Best In Melbourne

By BMW Sauber F1 Team
March 20 2007

After the season opener in Melbourne, Australia, the BMW Sauber F1 Team is currently in third position in the Constructors' Championship with five points under its belt. Both Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica set impressively competitive lap times at the Australian Grand Prix

For Nick, Melbourne's "Albert Park Circuit" is clearly a profitable venue. Last year, the 29-year-old also finished fourth there. In the opening race of the 2007 season, his five points saw the BMW Sauber F1 Team take third position in the Constructors' Championship, a position which reflected the team's performance level throughout the entire weekend perfectly.

In the three free practice sessions and in the qualifying session, the BMW Sauber F1.07 had already shown itself to be truly competitive. This gave Nick, Robert and Sebastian Vettel the opportunity to set consistently competitive lap times. What proved the team's competitiveness beyond doubt were its start positions: third and fifth on the grid.

In the race, Nick and Robert succeeded once again in confirming the team's great shape. Nick's personal fastest lap (1:26.722 minutes) was the sixth fastest lap time of the race. His Polish team-mate, meanwhile, set the fourth fastest lap time of the race: 1:26.642 minutes. "Both our drivers were working at the same level today," applauded BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen. And, indeed, the fourth place secured by Nick Heidfeld could even have been clinched by Robert had the Pole not been forced into retirement by gearbox problems.

"We still can't match the pace of Ferrari and McLaren," said Nick after the race. Nevertheless, sitting in third position in the Constructors' Championship after the season opener, the BMW Sauber F1 Team has already moved up on the Formula One front-runners. Now, it's all about underlining this competitiveness in the second round of the season: the Malaysian Grand Prix on 8th April.