Before the 2018 Australian Grand Prix weekend began, I posted five prediction polls on the Lights Out twitter account. How many of the questions did you get right? Find out below!
1. Where will Daniel Ricciardo finish the race?
1. Where will Daniel Ricciardo finish in his home Grand Prix? #LightsOutPredictions #AusGP #F1
— Lights Out ●●●●● (@LightsOutF1Blog) March 22, 2018
YOUR PREDICTION: ON THE PODIUM
CORRECT ANSWER: FOURTH
Perhaps Daniel Ricciardo could have finished on the podium, as 53% of you had predicted on Thursday, if it were not for his three-place grid penalty. After starting eighth on the grid, it took a while for the Honey Badger to hunt down his prey, but he was soon up to fourth. There wasn’t quite enough pace in the Red Bull for the Australian to overtake third placed Kimi Raikkonen. The elusive home podium still escapes Daniel Ricciardo.
2. Which team will lead the championship?
2. Which team will lead the championship after round one? #LightsOutPredictions #AusGP #F1
— Lights Out ●●●●● (@LightsOutF1Blog) March 22, 2018
YOUR PREDICTION: MERCEDES
CORRECT ANSWER: FERRARI
Ferrari lead the championship for the first time since the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix, thanks to Sebastian Vettel’s win and Kimi Raikkonen’s third place. 60% of you backed Mercedes to take the lead after the first round but a qualifying crash for Valtteri Bottas made things difficult for the reigning champions. A gearbox penalty saw Bottas start in fifteenth and only make up seven places during the race. Ferrari lead the Constructors’ Championship by eighteen points after the opening race.
3. Who’ll be fastest in First Practice?
3. Who'll set the pace in Free Practice 1? #LightsOutPredictions #AusGP #F1
— Lights Out ●●●●● (@LightsOutF1Blog) March 22, 2018
YOUR PREDICTION: MERCEDES
CORRECT ANSWER: MERCEDES
It was a close fight in this poll between Mercedes and Ferrari, but 35% of you correctly thought Mercedes would lead the way in the opening session of the Australian Grand Prix weekend. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time – 0.551 seconds faster than his team-mate.
4. Who’ll have the better debut?
4. Which rookie will finish highest in the 2018 #AusGP – Charles Leclerc or Sergey Sirtokin? #LightsOutPredictions #F1
— Lights Out ●●●●● (@LightsOutF1Blog) March 22, 2018
YOUR PREDICTION: CHARLES LECLERC
CORRECT ANSWER: CHARLES LECLERC
It was indeed the reigning F2 champion who had the better debut. While Charles Leclerc qualified eighteenth, Sergey Sirotkin qualified one position behind. Sirotkin’s race was ended prematurely thanks to a plastic sandwich bag getting caught in his right-rear brake duct. Leclerc, meanwhile, had a solid drive to thirteenth, comfortably beating Sirotkin’s team-mate Lance Stroll on track.
5. Who’ll score more points – McLaren or Toro Rosso?
5. Who will score more points – McLaren or Toro Rosso? #LightsOutPredictions #AusGP #F1
— Lights Out ●●●●● (@LightsOutF1Blog) March 22, 2018
YOUR PREDICTION: McLAREN
CORRECT ANSWER: McLAREN
After a shaky winter testing, McLaren showed some good race pace on Sunday in Australia and scored a double points finish. Fernando Alonso finished fifth, while Stoffel Vandoorne scored two points in ninth. Meanwhile at Toro Rosso, Pierre Gasly was forced to retire with a Honda power unit issue, while Brendon Hartley was last of the classified finishers in fifteenth.