The opening race of the 2012 Formula One World Championship takes place this weekend and, following todays practice sessions, Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button and Michael Schumacher have been giving their views on the Australian Grand Prix.
Hamilton explained, "It looks close between us, the Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes. It's going to be interesting. I'm massively excited to see how it goes."
Button added, "Red Bull are still going to be the ones to beat, but Mercedes seem competitive as well, but it's tough to say. It is a nice way to start the season, you'd rather be first than last. A positive day. We didn't get a lot of running today, but it was useful because we haven't run in the wet. I'm reasonably happy with the car here. It feels nice, but a relatively good Friday considering the limited running."
Schumacher said, "Today was a nice start into a hopefully exciting season, and certainly two promising sessions for us. However, I would not go so far as to speak about being confident, as the weather conditions were too mixed to gain a clear picture. We know what Friday sessions are for and don't know what fuel loads others were running. On the other hand, it is good to see that we were competitive in different circumstances today and that the car provides good handling - I just feel it."
Qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix takes place at 6am UK time.
