2006 Australian Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso won the 2006 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit on 2 Apr 2006 for Renault, from 3rd on the grid; Kimi Räikkönen was second and Ralf Schumacher third. Pole position: Jenson Button.

Alonso took the lead for good on lap 23 of 57, from Mark Webber; the lead changed hands 4 times in all. There were 4 safety-car periods (laps 1 to 4, laps 8 to 10, laps 33 to 36, laps 36 to 41). Alonso stopped 2 times, on laps 20 and 34; 9 of 13 finishers made 2 stops, and the median first stop was lap 22. The fastest lap was Kimi Räikkönen's, 1:26.045 on lap 57. 13 of 22 starters were classified; 9 retired or were not classified. After the race Fernando Alonso led the championship with 28 points, 14 ahead of Giancarlo Fisichella, with 15 rounds left.

Date

2 Apr 2006

Circuit

Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia

Round

3 of 18

Winner

Fernando Alonso (Renault)

Pole position

Jenson Button (1:25.229)

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Race classification

Grid differs from qualifying for 11 drivers: Jacques Villeneuve qualified 9th, started 19th; Jarno Trulli qualified 10th, started 9th; Michael Schumacher qualified 11th, started 10th; David Coulthard qualified 12th, started 11th; Vitantonio Liuzzi qualified 13th, started 12th; Christian Klien qualified 14th, started 13th; Nico Rosberg qualified 15th, started 14th; Felipe Massa qualified 16th, started 15th; Rubens Barrichello qualified 17th, started 16th; Christijan Albers qualified 18th, started 17th; Scott Speed qualified 19th, started 18th. The data records the positions, not the reason; such gaps come from grid penalties, car or engine changes, or pit-lane starts. The small "q" number in the Grid column is the qualifying position.

Grid "PL" means started from the pit lane. FL marks the fastest lap of the race.

Lap chart

Explained: how to read a lap chart · safety car, virtual safety car and red flags.

Race history: gap to the leader

How the race was won

Winner

Fernando Alonso: 2 stops (laps 20, 34), stints of 20, 14, 23 laps

2nd

Kimi Räikkönen: 2 stops (laps 21, 34), stints of 21, 13, 23 laps

3rd

Ralf Schumacher: 3 stops (laps 19, 23, 34), stints of 19, 4, 11, 23 laps

Finishers

1 stop: 1 · 2 stops: 9 · 3 or more: 3

First stops

median lap 22 of 57

Pit stops

Explained: tyres, compounds and pit stops · pit stops per race since 1994.

Pit-lane time: pit entry to pit exit. Tyre changes under a red flag are not counted.

Qualifying

Explained: how qualifying works · how often pole position wins.

Gap: the driver's best time in any session (session named), in seconds behind the fastest time of qualifying. That is usually the pole time; when a session gets slower (rain, for example), an earlier session's time can be faster. The bar is full at 3 seconds; larger gaps are cut off.

Standings after this race

Explained: how points and the two championships work.

Full 2006 standings