Carlos Sainz, from the hospital to glory

It was not the usual Dutchman, but Carlos Sainz who won the third event of the year. With a recently operated appendicitis and after two weeks without being able to train, the Madrid native took his third victory in Formula 1, demonstrating not only that Ferrari is there as the second team in the running, but that they are ruled out for 2025 by Lewis Hamilton (who also left this Sunday due to a breakdown) may not have been such an obviously good decision. And the race management work of the Madrid native on a track like Melbourne, possibly one of the most complicated (and fun) on the calendar, means that he can go at least until the next race with his head held high. It cannot be ignored that in these circumstances any slightest mistake can ruin a successful victory, but Sainz did not make a mistake: he had, possibly, one of his best races with the Scuderia shield on his chest.

It cannot be ignored that this was a relatively comfortable victory and in which Ferrari showed that, if they want, they can do teamwork. It is not usual and, if it is done, the coin does not always fall on the Spaniard's side. Charles Leclerc, and it is fair to point out, showed that he can be a perfect squire. When Lando Norris, third on a podium without Verstappen (without a doubt, the big news this weekend), tried to cough up the race silver, Leclerc stuck out his elbows and prevented the McLaren driver from finishing just behind his great friend Sainz. .

Beyond the obvious fact, the race itself maintained the same tone as in the previous races. Although the main protagonist of the day was not the usual one, and this is a huge change, it was not a date with many overtakes, fights to the limit (which there were) or moments that made the fans out of their seats. But seeing other actors acting as Tenorios is already a great novelty.

That is why the perception of this race may vary from previous ones. Sainz, who can now be baptized as Verstappen's kryptonite after this victory and the one in Singapore in 2023, which was the only one that escaped the Dutchman, sent a clear message to those who still doubt whether he has future or not in this Formula 1. It is evident that both Toto Wolff and Christian Horner (if he continues as head of Red Bull, which remains to be seen, in 2025) should have taken good note of what has happened in this race . A convalescing Carlos Sainz, still with pain and difficulty moving in conditions as was clear when he got off the SF24 to speak with Gunter Steiner, the former Netflix boss of Haas who was fired and who is now trying to stay in the paddock as a commentator. This time there was undoubted joy among the mechanics in red, without any hint of doubt, and not only because of the Scuderia's double (first in two years, although with the order reversed) but because they are confirmed as a possible alternative. Even if it has to be at the expense of an eventual and rare failure by Red Bull or Verstappen.

The ant work of Fernando Alonso

Seeing how the usual one abandoned due to a mechanical problem and how another of the candidates to fight for the podium, Hamilton, was also left out makes one think that the dream of the '33' has escaped again and not due to his own demerit, or not absolutely. But Fernando Alonso was satisfied within reason after finishing sixth in Melbourne. It is no wonder: after starting tenth on the grid after the failure he had in qualifying and, what is better, with the double abandonment of Mercedes (Russell crashed when he was trying to overtake him, another final mistake by the British) Aston Martin fell manna from heaven in the form of points.

But hours after the race ended, the FIA ​​wanted to see Fernando Alonso's braking closely in Russell's accident in case there was any irregularity and they finally understood that the Spaniard braked unnecessarily beforehand, which is known as a 'brake test'. ' and he received a 20-second penalty. A time that made Alonso go from sixth to eighth position.