(The following opinion was written prior to the 2001 Australian Grand Prix)

The circuit itself is set in the roads around Albert Park Lake much to the chagrin of local environmentalists who invariably stage protests in the weeks leading up to the race. The circuit itself is broadly classified as a medium speed track (Michael Schumacher won in 2000 at an average speed of 196kph), which is quite punishing on the cars, especially the brakes, as much of the track comprises quick straights leading into tight corners. This has often lead to teams fitting extra large brake discs to go the distance. In 1997 the Williams-Renault team were unable to do so and Heinz-Harald Frentzen's disc exploded while chasing David Coulthard's McLaren, sending the Williams spinning off the circuit. The combination of a punishing track being used for the first rate usually produces a high rate of attrition. In 1999 only eight drivers completed the distance and the numerous retirements gifted Eddie Irvine (Ferrari) his first Grand Prix win.

The 2001 race will be the seventeenth Grand Prix held in Australia - races began here in 1985 at the Adelaide street circuit. While Melbourne is the popular modern season opener, Adelaide was the equally popular conclusion to the season and held the last race of every championship from 1985-95. During this time it saw some highly memorable races and concluded the championship battle on two occasions. The first race in 1985 was the last Grand Prix victory for Finland's Keke Rosberg, the 1982 Champion and now manager for compatriot Mika Hakkinen.

On other occasions although the championship title had been decided earlier the race itself was highly dramatic. In 1989 heavy rain made driving conditions extremely dangerous, and new champion Prost refused to race. Ayrton Senna disappeared off into the distance using his typical wet weather supremacy, but even he failed to finish after unsightedly driving into the back of Martin Brundle's Brabham. While many drivers spun and crashed into retirement, Thierry Boutsen drove a skilled race to win for Williams. The rain returned even heavier in 1991, to the extent that the race was abandoned after only 14 laps - the shortest race in Grand Prix history. Senna won and Mansell was second but failed to reach the podium after crashing heavily while the race was being stopped.

Though Melbourne has yet to produce any truly thrilling races it has had its' share of high points. At the first race in 1996 Hill became one of the few (perhaps only) drivers to win consecutive Grands Pric in the same country. He was fortunate to do so, however, as new team mate Jacques Villeneuve took pole for his first ever race and continually rebuffed Hill's challenges throughout the race until an oil leak forced him to concede the lead. In 1997 Coulthard gave McLaren their first victory since Senna's last win in Adelaide in 1993. 1998 was a more controversial affair for the McLaren team - they dominated the race but leader Hakkinen entered the pit lane out of error on one lap losing the lead to his team mate. Coulthard, honouring an agreement they had made prior to the race, let Hakkinen back through. Allegations of race-fixing were made and the FIA temporarily introduced legislation to curb team orders preferring one driver over another.

It will also provide the first clue as to who will have the upper hand in the various inter-team rivalries that have been brewing over the winter break. New boy Juan Pablo Montoya has considerably unnerved Ralf Schumacher at Williams-BMW, and it will be of particular interest to see how the new Columbian fares in his first race. 2000 debut star Jenson Button is also expected to ruffle Giancarlo Fisichella's feathers at Benetton. Personally I am particularly interested in the battle between the Honda engined teams BAR and Jordan - I would like to see the latter return to the form they showed in 1999. Two other drivers will be making their debut race alongside Montoya - Kimi Raikonen makes his first start for Sauber, and Enrique Bernoldi has taken the second Arrows seat alongside Jos Verstappen in place of the highly popular Pedro De La Rosa. Finally, it will be interesting to see if the highly promising testing performances the Prost team have put in can be translated to on-track performance.