Albert Park Circuit Has New Layout, Max Verstappen: There Should Be More Chance To Overtake

Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen. (Photo: Twitter @redbullracing)

JAKARTA - Formula 1 racing in Australia will be different from previous events. The reason is, the Albert Park Circuit now has a new layout.

The new "appearance" of the Albert Park Circuit was enthusiastically welcomed by Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen. Although wary of new challenges later, he hopes to achieve good results with his team in the Australian GP F1.

The Red Bull racer is trying to maintain the winning momentum he achieved in Jeddah last month. It was a relief victory for Verstappen after failing to finish in Bahrain.

"It will be interesting to see the new ones from this track, I think they will make quite a difference, especially at Turn six which has the most significant changes," Verstappen said, quoted by Antara from AFP.

Albert Park will offer a new challenge for all riders after undergoing significant modifications since hosting the GP for the first time in 1996. The entire track has been re-paved with seven corners changed and two corners removed so that it has a total of 14 corners.

In addition, the new track is expected to offer more overtaking opportunities and allow the car to go five seconds faster.

"There should be more overtaking opportunities now, this is positive. It will be interesting to see how the cars perform in Australia, a track that can get quite dusty at times. I hope we have a smooth weekend as a team," said Verstappen.

Albert Park has always been the opening race of the season since 1996 but this year has been shifted to the third series on the calendar following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions in the state of Victoria.

Melbourne failed to hold a race in 2021 due to strict quarantine rules after the 2020 race was canceled before Friday's first practice session due to concerns over COVID-19.

Australia will also see the return of four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, who missed the season-opening two races due to contracting COVID-19.

"For me, after almost a month without racing, learning throughout the training sessions will be important," said the Aston Martin driver.