Valtteri got off to a cracking start and never looked back or worried. Must be the beard...

Hamilton may want to think about not getting pole next season at this track. It hasn't netted him a win in 4 years. Not sure where his pace went after the pit stop, but he didn't seem too worried (at least not PR Hamilton at the post race interview). When asked about covering Max, he dismissively said that was no problem. Ouch.

Good result for Max, but more impressive for Honda. First time a Honda powered car has seen a podium in a decade. Had Horner and RB not have screwed the pooch in quali with Gasley, Ferrari may have had even more to worry about. Speaking of which...

Pornstache and The Clerk weren't in contention at all this race. Albert Park is never a great litmus test, as it's hard to pass on this track (not as bad as, say, Monaco) but to be that far off pace has to have the Tofossi concerned. I heard rumors they had to run the PU a tick lower this race. If so, that's either a blip that they figure out quickly or there are bigger development problems they aren't letting on. Personally, I think it comes down to Vettel's facial hair. Cut the 'stache man...

Other quick thoughts:
- Haas may end up best of the rest. Whether they had the same low power that Ferrari did is unclear
- Sucks to see Ricciardo with a DNF at his home race. His run with Renault didn't start the way he hoped, I"m sure
- Speaking of Renault, with Sainz and Danny retiring I wonder if they are still having PU issues. That wouldn't bode well for the season, though I'm sure C. Horner will be cackling with glee at their misfortunes. At least The Hulk made it 7th
- Norris couldn't make his Q3 run turn into points today. Still, great showing for the rookie
- Welcome back Kvyat. Managed to get the last point on the board

As noted, this isn't the best track to go predicting things. That said, if Mercedes has a car that Bottas can stretch the field by 20 seconds, it's going to be a looooong season for the rest of the field.

See everyone in 2 weeks!