Moment of madness ruins Williams’ promising start

MELBOURNE: Pastor Maldonado’s rush of blood to the head at the end of the Australian Grand Prix denied Williams more points on Sunday than the Formula One team had scored in all of last season.

The Venezuelan had shown competitive pace through 57 of the 58 laps and looked set to finish sixth when he lost control of his car on the final lap and crashed spectacularly while pressing the fifth–placed Ferrari of Fernando Alonso.

Williams chairman Adam Parr, whose team racked up just five points last year in their worst–ever season, said he understood why the Venezuelan had been trying to pass Alonso rather than banking the eight points.

“He wasn’t side by side with Fernando but he’s a racer,” Parr told Sky TV. “If there’s a car in front of him, he doesn’t appreciate that very much. So I am afraid that’s just in the blood.

“I think you can imagine that a driver who doesn’t finish a race always feels very frustrated. But I gave him a cuddle and I said ‘ You drove a great race and we’ll have another go in seven days’ time.”

Parr’s disappointment was tempered by the fact that after several years in the doldrums, Sunday’s season-opener proved that the nine–time contructors’ champions had a car with the pace to challenge at the front of the grid.

“At the end of the day we’ve had a great weekend,” he said. “We’ve done a lot in the last few months to truly try and turn the team around and I think we’ve had a lot of evidence this weekend that we’re making really good progress.

“The car was better than anything I have seen in recent years actually, so I think we have to take the positives from today.”