The season opener for STSF1 in 2016 lived up to the high expectations. New stars arose, familiar faces retained their form as others try to find their feet. It had the action, the drama - you name it. The reigning champion, Salih Saltunc (TheFlyingFinn08) showed he had lost none of his pace entering the qualifying stage for the Australian Grand Prix, decimating the entire field by almost a full second. Josh Idowu (Suphrize Meh) and rbz1012 entered in fairly spectacular fashion taking a spot in the first and second row on their debut in STSF1. Sonuc Saltunc (STSF1 Alonso14) looked to surprise many after a fairly abysmal first season with pad struggles, he was back with a bang as he took third spot in qualifying. With the top half of the grid looking extremely close, the top four were followed up by Michael Marsh (MikeMarshmellow), Oscar Lucas (FCGOscar), Aaron James (CS Akihiro) and Josh Cowan (IRL Giovinazzi). However, it was Suphrize Meh that took the checkered flag at Albert Park for the first round of the STSF1 S2 Championship, making it 25 points for himself and the Red Bull Team! MikeMarshmellow cruised home in second towards the end after a hard-fought battle with the Renault of STSF1 Alonso14 and CS Akihiro battled his way through the grid from 7th to take the last spot on the podium after a controversial end to the race, adding another podium finish to his tally. Here's what the Top 10 had to say following an intense first race: Q: Congratulations on your first victory on your debut in STSF1. You must be delighted with the result. What are your thoughts reflecting on the first race? Suphrize Meh: Thanks! From Round 1, I was hoping for a podium. I knew that it would be difficult with veterans such as TheFlyingFinn08 and STSF1 Alonso, and new fast drivers such as MikeMarshmallow and rbz1012, so it was a challenge. But after a second place qualifying, I knew that with a quick start, I'd be able to challenge. It would seem that I would stay second through the race until TheFlyingFinn08 made a mistake which gifted me first place. But from then on it was putting in consistent times to fend off MikeMarshmellow. Q: Well done once again. What are your thoughts and expectations heading into the next race? Suphrize Meh: I would be really happy with a Top 5 finish as my race pace isn't the best at Bahrain, but we will see. Q: A second place finish on your return to STSF1, happy with the result? MikeMarshmellow: Yeah, it was an interesting race. More so due to the fact that I qualified out of position down in fifth place, so I had some ground to make up in the race. I was catching up 2nd place quickly but a few costly errors made that I was eventually fighting a losing battle. I was fortunate to take second place due to TheFlyingFinn08 crashing out. I think for Bahrain, I would like to replicate my 2nd place, and I think it's possible as it's a strong track for me, unlike Australia. Q: It's a podium for you in the first race of the season, tell us your thoughts on the race. CS Akihiro: Yeah, I think I can be satisfied with that result. I didn't get the best qualifying lap in (7th place) but I knew that if I used my knowledge and experience and translated it into my race craft, I could have a good result. I think I had both a lot of good fortune and misfortune in the race. I had a good start and kept my nose clean through T1 behind MikeMarshmellow who also got away well, but a scrap between rbz2012 and FCGOscar cost me, and rbz2012 also shut the door on me in the first lap on the last corner. So very frustrated early on, and that showed in my early pace as it wasn't very good. It's a bittersweet feeling that I finished ahead of my teammate (STSF1 Alonso14) and also got the podium because I knew that he had a drive-through penalty and also TheFlyingFinn08's DNF gave us a chance to fight for the podium, and I fought extremely hard towards the end. All-in-all, definitely one of the more exciting races I've drove in. Q: Expectations heading into Bahrain? CS Akihiro: I've struggled a lot so far with not having a wheel. If I keep up this race pace however, I'm sure I can make it happen again in the race if I don't have such a good qualifying. We'll see. Q: 4th place on your debut, tell us your thoughts on your first race in STSF1. rbz2012: It was a solid race all round, it was pretty irritating towards the end as my tyres were shot and I struggled to keep within track limits. Hopefully in Bahrain I can score another Top 5 finish, possibly a podium. Q: A strong 5th place for your first race at Renault showing better form than last year, but not the result you wanted. Tell us about it. STSF1 Alonso14: Yeah, I had a really good qualifying putting the car 3rd on the grid and I got a really good start. However, I let myself down by speeding in the pit lane and getting a drive-through penalty. That being said, I'm really happy with my comeback. I'll be going for the win in Bahrain! Q: A decent points finish (6th) in your first race at Ferrari, how do you feel about the result? IRL Giovinazzi: I can do a lot better. I'm pretty disappointed with my result because I just wasn't consistent at all. But honestly, the cars ahead of me were all super quick and I think if I can get it together next week then a top 5 is definitely possible. Q: You've managed your first points finish in the first race back for the new season, tell us how feel about the race and what you predict for the next one. x Zexyyy: I think Australia has been a big success for me. I was able to pick up a few points which I couldn't do last season. Heading to Bahrain, I know I'll need to pick up the pace as there are a lot of fast drivers on the grid, hopefully I can pick up some points there too. Q: 8th place for you in your debut, how do you feel about the result? Iron Weasel 54: My thoughts from the first race...personally I think I had a bad race. I was sandwiched between two cars at the start and spun at the first corner. I had a good start so it was frustrating. No complaints though, as it was a racing incident and just bad luck. My target for the next race is to be in the points again. It's my first season in league racing and my first season without any sort of assists so to fight in the midfield and pick up the odd point here and there is a realistic expectation. Q: Two points in your debut race at Australia, the season opener for STSF1 S2. Thoughts on your first race? JIM rPg45: Well, Round 1 didn't go quite as I expected. I was involved in a first lap incident that lost half of my front wing and so after pitting to fix that, I was fighting in the back of the pack. I made up a few positions but then I made an error when trying to let ii aM TooLeY x past which caused him to crash out of the race entirely. This resulted in me receiving a qualifying ban for next race which I feel was deserved. I am proud though that I was able to score 2 championship points from this race. My goal for Round 2 will be to try and get at least one point as I will be starting from the back. I feel more comfortable at Bahrain than Australia but the competition will still be high and I think there will be a good fight for those last few championship points. Q: A decent drive to bag yourself a point, but not the way you wanted it. What are your thoughts on the race? JackClays: It was a frustrating first race to be honest. I struggled a lot with no traction but started to get into the race every lap. Unfortunately I got involved in an incident with Iron Weasel 54 which resulted in me losing my front wing. However, I'm still pleased to get a point on the board for the first race after having a nightmare in qualifying. My goal for Round 2...probably to get some more points on the board for myself and the team, looking forward to Bahrain because I would say it is one of my favourite tracks. Here's a word with the drivers who failed to finish in yesterday's Australian Grand Prix. Q: Finn, a stunning qualifying yet a disappointing end of what looked to be another win for you at Albert Park. Tell us what your thoughts are. TheFlyingFinn08: Yeah, my qualifying lap was as perfect as I could imagine on this track. It felt great to get into the 23's. I knew my start was gonna be crucial for the race so I made sure I got a clean getaway and managed to lead from there on. I made no mistakes in my first two stints whatsoever, and I was cruising in the lead with a 15 second gap and 7-8 laps to go, I had the super soft tyre fitted for my last stint and then just focused on keeping the car on the track to take it to the finish line. As I came into turn 1, I somehow got wheel spin coming out the corner and then went straight into the wall. I was pretty shocked at the time because it happened very unexpectedly, I wasn't pushing or trying hard, it just happened with lack of concentration. It feels awful to throw away 25 points like that, but it is what it is. I'd like to congratulate Suphrize Meh for the win on his debut and MikeMarshmallow for his second place on his return and I'd also like to applaud CS Akihiro for his well earned third place! Q: Evidently, you must be disappointed. However, looking ahead to Bahrain, what are your expectations and what are you hoping for? My aim for Round 2 will be to win the race, but I know it won't be easy against these new fast drivers in the league we are against at the moment. I also expect a stronger performance from STSF1 Alonso14 and my team mate ii aM TooLeY x. With the safety car possibly being in use this time, anything can happen...McLaren will bounce back! Q: Tooley, you must be devastated that McLaren suffered two DNFs this race, your own being none of your own doing. Any words for us? ii aM TooLeY x: I turn up, I race and that's all. With Bahrain right around the corner, there are many high expectations after such a promising start to the season! Be sure to stay tuned @STSF1_Racing on Twitter, @STSF1Racing on Facebook and @KarkinosSolar for the live streams every Monday at 8pm BST!
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