Ferrari’s drivers, Leclerc and Sainz, sit on the top of the drivers standings after two races in the new generation cars. Of course, Verstappen and Perez had a DNF and lost several points – still, Ferrari has more than double the points of the closest competitor. Due to restrictions and logistical challenges relating to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Melbourne GP was cancelled in 2021 but returns this year with several changes in its layout and four DRS zones! How many times are we going to see Charles and Max passing each other?

The model predicts Leclerc to qualify ahead of Verstappen. It still overestimates Bottas’ chances in both quali and race – I think the model will adjust once more races are completed. Can Mercedes close the gap to the front-running teams? Can Magnussen make it to the podium and repeat his amazing first-race feat?

As always, you can access the power predictions here.

Driver	Qualifying Prediction	Actual Qualifying Result	Race Prediction	Actual Race Result
Leclerc	1	1	1	1
Perez	5	3	3	2
Russell	7	6	6	3
Hamilton	6	5	5	4
Norris	12	4	7	5
Ricciardo	16	7	12	6
Ocon	8	8	10	7
Bottas	4	12	8	8
Gasly	11	11	11	9
Albon	18	16	18	10
Zhou	13	14	14	11
Stroll	19	20	17	12
Schumacher	15	15	16	13
Magnussen	10	17	15	14
Tsunoda	14	13	13	15
Latifi	20	19	20	16
Alonso	9	10	9	17
Verstappen	2	2	2	R
Vettel	17	18	19	R
Sainz	3	9	4	R