What does it mean to achieve a 1-2 finish in Melbourne: statistic that favors Ferrari. Achieving a 1-2 finish in Melbourne historically carries a specific significance.

It’s clearly a statistic that may not hold much weight, but achieving a 1-2 finish in Melbourne historically carries a specific significance.

More than 48 hours have passed since Carlos Sainz’s titanic feat in Australia, yet we all still have the fantastic Ferrari 1-2 finish vividly in our minds, completely defying any pre-weekend predictions.

While Max Verstappen’s retirement eased the way for the two Ferrari drivers, the SF24 also proved to be a decidedly competitive car in terms of race pace, with the Suzuka race serving as the litmus test in this regard.

But what does it mean to achieve a 1-2 finish in Melbourne? It’s clearly a statistic that may not hold much weight, but historically, achieving a 1-2 finish in Melbourne (since 1996) means taking home both the drivers’ and constructors’ titles at the end of the Formula 1season.

Looking at the hall of fame, Williams was the first to fulfill this particular statistic, with Damon Hill winning the Australian GP in 1996 ahead of teammate Jacques Villeneuve. Indeed, at the end of the year, the Grove-based team clinched the constructors’ title, with the British driver becoming the world champion.

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The same happened two years later at McLaren, with Mika Hakkinen winning in Melbourne ahead of David Coulthard. In 2000, it was Ferrari’s turn, with the Michael Schumacher – Rubens Barrichello 1-2 finish ultimately delivering the title to the Prancing Horse and the Kaiser, initiating a long streak of championships. The same goes for 2004, again with the German-Brazilian duo.

In 2009, the meteoric rise of BrawnGP dominated the Australian GP, with Jenson Button going on to win his first and only drivers’ title of his career, as did the team founded by Ross Brawn.

The last three times a 1-2 finish in Melbourne coincided with both drivers’ championship wins at the end of the season all bear the Mercedes name. In 2015, Lewis Hamilton won ahead of Nico Rosberg, while the following year saw the exact opposite.

The statistic smiled once again at Hamilton in 2019, this time with Valtteri Bottas as his teammate.

Source: f1ingenerale