2012 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix
Albert Park Circuit utilizes everyday sections of road that circle Albert Park Lake, a small man-made lake just south of the central business district of Melbourne. The temporary street course is 5.3 kilometers long. A total of 16 corners with 10 right turns and 6 left turns. The direction is clockwise. Engines are running about 65 percent of the lap at full throttle. The highest speed on the circuit is at the end of the start/finish straight with speeds over 300 km/h. The track offers few genuine overtaking opportunities, except if the driver ahead makes a mistake.
The track is fairly demanding and tricky for the drivers as it is quite fast and also contains many challenging corners. The secret of a good lap time depends not on peak power, but on good torque to help launch the car out of the slow corners that connect the succession of straights. Compared to other races that are held on public roads, the track has quite a smooth surface but there is no grip at all to start with. There are also a lot of road markings which reduce grip even further. Grip improves throughout the weekend as more rubber is laid down.
Albert Park Circuit is only used for the Australian Grand Prix, there are no other motorsport meetings there during the year. Each year, the much of the trackside fencing, grandstands, pedestriance overpasses, and other motorsport infrastructure are erected from approximately four weeks prior to the race weekend and removed within two weeks after the event. Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle flag possible F1 exit after 2015 because he thinks the event is no longer value for money for the Victorian state taxpayers.