This was a race that featured strategic gambles, unreliability and incidents, overtaking manoeuvres, intriguing subplots amongst the leading four teams, and heroic efforts from some of the midfield teams. But before anyone gets too carried away, this is what happens when you take the circus away from a Tilke-drome, onto a bumpy and narrower street track, where the layout better encourages cars behind to hound rather than follow, and cars ahead to push to the point where they make mistakes.

Oh yes, and when you douse the track just before race start. After the race, John Button suggested that maybe every track should have a sprinkler system installed. F1 Rejects has been saying that for years! Of course, in all seriousness such artificiality will always be too much for purists. The point is, in two races we have seen the best and worst of the vagaries of the 2010 rules. The lessons and debate from Bahrain still need to be heeded; but encouragement from Australia should also be duly taken on board.

And if Melbourne threw up a more ultimate example of the challenges which the 2010 regulations pose, what it also shows is that level-headedness has become more of a factor. It’s not just about talent and raw driving ability. Nor is it just about having the best, the fastest, or the most reliable car. Nor is it just about strategies spat out by a calculator. Now stealth and smarts, especially on the run mid-race, can make a difference, and a welcome one at that.

You really need to have a more complete all-round package to succeed, and nothing demonstrates this more vividly than the self-destruction of Red Bull this Sunday late-afternoon. The RB6 may be stunningly fast and clever. And Sebastian Vettel may well be immensely special. Mark Webber was a man on a mission this weekend, looking for redemption after a C-grade effort in Bahrain, with his best shot at a home victory, and both blisteringly fast and wonderfully smooth in practice and qualifying.

Sebastian too was driven by a desire for revenge, having been obliterated by Webber on his home soil in Germany last year. So you had two equally-driven men, and the result? Vettel pulled out the faster Q3 lap to take pole despite at least one lurid mistake. That tells you the difference in ability. And then the German probably had the race under control when brake failure pitched him out. Two races, two mechanical problems costing victory, and already a major dent in their championship aspirations.

Such is Red Bull’s incompleteness as a front-running team. Last year, broadly speaking Vettel made mistakes, and mechanical, operational and strategic errors cost Webber. This year it’s the other way around, but the point is, it’s the same issues that are yet to be addressed. Here, the most notable tactical error was failing to bring at least one car in for slicks when practically everyone else did, when they were running 1-2, meaning that Vettel came in a lap too late, and Webber two laps too late.

It cost Vettel time but not track position, but it was the first disaster in Webber’s race which simply snowballed from there. And what was Red Bull’s rationale for being so behind the eight ball? Apparently, because the intermediates were holding up OK. But so what? Button had set two fastest sectors, and more importantly everyone else was coming in. Red Bull could surely see other crews’ preparation. There was enough time to react to bring Vettel in and only costing Webber one lap’s worth of lost time.

Red Bull had nothing to lose by following everyone else’s lead. If it was really too early for slicks, then all their rivals were in the same boat because they were pitting. Plus the evidence from Button’s timing suggested that that was not the case. This was just like Toyota’s desperate error in Bahrain last year. When you are leading 1-2, that is not a time for going out on a limb. It is a time to play along with whatever everyone else will be doing in order to maintain your track position.

Had Vettel pitted along with everyone else, and Webber the lap after, Webber may have still stayed in front of Button or emerged just behind. Maybe even stacking Webber behind Vettel was a realistic option. Either way, Webber initially dropped to 5th, and panic began to set in. He made a mistake at the first corner after pit exit, and then after an OK pass on Felipe Massa which meant Lewis Hamilton got a run on him, the McLaren driver duped him into running too deep into turn 3.

From there, yes he stole a place on Fernando Alonso when the Ferraris baulked each other lapping Heikki Kovalainen’s Lotus. The decision to make a second stop was a feasible gamble, so that can’t be criticised. And yes he gained a place on Nico Rosberg as a result. But then there was the late-race assault on Hamilton which he attributes to losing front downforce, but is perhaps also attributable to getting over-excited and missing his braking point whilst trying to get into the mix of Alonso and Hamilton’s duel.

After the race, Mark was obviously dejected with the result, but said he was happy to have gone down fighting. He just doesn’t get it, does he? Biff and barge might be good for V8 Supercars or NASCAR, but a little less red mist and most of his incidents could have been avoided. That so-called fighting spirit and grit is not, repeat not, something to be proud of in the circumstances. The team’s error cost him the win or at worst a fairly comfortable 2nd place, but his own folly cost him a podium.

In two successive weekends, all of Mark’s deficiencies as a front-running F1 driver have been writ large, and it is 'Reject of the Race' for him on his home turf. This is not borne out of unreasonable local hype leading to disappointment, for on an objective analysis this was a truly winnable race for him, even in the variable weather. And it is not about Mark’s legendary bad luck either. In fact, that cliché about his ill-fortune must no longer hide a more critical and realistic appraisal of his strengths and weaknesses as a driver.

One final word about Red Bull’s failure to capitalise on its pace superiority in the first two races. One of the talking points during the weekend was how the RB6 can seemingly run a low ride-height in qualifying, therefore generating more grip, and yet must surely raise the car once it is fuelled up. It’s not quite an active ride system, but some suspect a clever ratchet system. Some teams have sort clarification, notably McLaren and Mercedes. Clearly, this can go either way.

If Adrian Newey and his men have indeed come up with something cunning, it could end up like what happened to Renault’s mass dampers in 2006, and be banned forthwith. Alternatively, it could be approved like double-decker diffusers were last year, in which case the other leading teams will all be creating their own versions. Either way, Red Bull’s apparent advantage will probably not last forever. Not taking advantage now is a double-setback which could well prove critical later in the season.

If Red Bull threw away victory, Button deservedly picked up the pieces. His race was not perfect. He tagged Alonso at the first corner, but that was a 50-50 racing incident, because he was given no room at all by the Ferrari. And when he gambled on slicks, he initially speared off at turn 3. But from the second and third sectors of that lap onwards, he was faultless. When others had rear tyre graining and considered a second stop, Jenson’s tyres were all in fine shape, such was the way he had managed his pace.

This was a triumph for exactly the thing that we thought would hold Button in good stead this year - tyre preservation thanks to his smooth driving style. Plus it was a victory for not panicking when he found the going hard on intermediates and Hamilton got past him early on, and not going nuts when he found himself in a close 2nd after Vettel finally changed to slicks. This was exactly the kind of maturity that took him to the championship last year.

It was also a crucial statement of intent for his battle with Hamilton at McLaren. If anyone thought it was game, set and match after Hamilton clearly had the edge in Bahrain, think again. It was Button getting the job done here, not only in the race but in qualifying as well. Lewis may be the precocious prodigy but he now has a history of wobbling under pressure. Jenson has just proven the results-effectiveness of a steadier approach. It is very Senna v Prost, just hopefully without the angst.

Hamilton’s frankly disastrous weekend only highlighted Button’s strengths, and Lewis must now start to fear coming to Australia. Being caught by the cops for hooning just as the FIA launches its road safety campaign was almost comically amusing were it not a serious topic, but then he became the first major qualifying casualty of 2010 when he bombed out in Q2. Traffic and tyres may have played a role, but so did timing and fuel mismanagement which meant he didn’t get a proper opportunity at the end of Q2.

A delay in his stop for slicks was not his fault, his move around the outside of Rosberg at turn 11 was awesome, and the concept of his second stop for slicks was not necessarily a bad one either. But two aspects of that stop are worthy of criticism. The first is that he was openly damning of the decision both on the radio and after the race when it turned out to disadvantage him. Need he be reminded that there may be an "I" in both "Lewis" and "Hamilton", but there is no "I" in "team".

Secondly, when asked whose decision it was, he says "I don’t know, we’ll find out." Excuse me? Either this means he refuses to take any blame for the decision, which is pathetic in itself. Or it means that he had no input in the decision, which is equally laughable. Surely the decision of whether to make a second stop was based on tyre condition. The team could determine the amount of graining by television images and from the telemetry, but surely driver input was vital.

If McLaren wanted him to pit, and he felt he didn’t need to, he must have been able to say so. Plus, at the end of the day, it was Lewis who had to drive his car into the pits. Any way you look at it, he acquiesced in the decision to pit. So for him to grump about it afterwards was an unpleasant resurfacing of the petulant child in him. It also affected the way in which he went about trying to pass Alonso. With the aero disturbance it was always going to be hard, but he did not seem to apply a clear head to the task.

After the relative comfort of the 1-2 in Bahrain, Ferrari never seemed totally on-song in Melbourne. Alonso was the undisputed lead driver in the team for all but the race; he was the only one whose pace genuinely threatened the Red Bulls. But his chances were destroyed when he got tagged by Button at the first corner, and he had to burn from the stern from there. But perhaps, on closer analysis, it was Fernando’s own fault for his poor start and for putting himself in that position in the first place.

If you look at replays of the start, you will see that the Spaniard positioned his Ferrari further to left of his grid slot than Vettel in front of him or those behind him. Being a street circuit, there were many road markings that had been covered with black paint, and one long line of black paint ran right along the left edge of the odd grid slots. Fernando placed his left wheels over that painted line whereas others avoided it. In doing so, he almost certainly contributed to his own poor getaway.

He was able to climb back onto team-mate Massa’s tail firstly because he didn’t have to wait behind Felipe in pitting for slicks, and also thanks to several incisive laps initially on slicks. But despite being clearly faster than Felipe, and a lot less ragged, he was unable to get past. The intra-team battles at all the four leading teams are fascinating, and this one is brewing nicely. Obviously there is no number 1 status. Massa has out-qualified Alonso in Bahrain, and Fernando was stuck behind Felipe for most of the race here.

Massa has to count himself fortunate for ending up on the podium again, because he struggled in practice and the early parts of qualifying. Although his final Q3 lap was a good hustling effort, his race was not impressive after that initial dynamite start, which was brilliant indeed, to give credit where credit’s due. But after that, if you had played a drinking game based on how many times he missed an apex, ran wide on exit, or slid on acceleration, you would have been drunk by half-distance.

To round off the four major teams, Rosberg was perhaps the most unspectacular of the eight drivers from those teams all weekend. But he was steady enough, and once again when it counted, in qualifying and the race, he had the wood on Michael Schumacher. This was a much-improved performance by the seven-time champion after the Bahrain anti-climax, and his flying laps on a slippery track in free practice two, and also in free practice three, suggested that the mojo was well and truly coming back.

But then in qualifying he claimed he lost front aero grip, but more importantly he blamed Alonso for blocking him. He even confronted the Spaniard in front of the cameras and marched up to Charlie Whiting to talk about it. This after he had already riled Alonso by visiting his Ferrari mates and being chummy with them in the paddock. It is all rather intriguing. On one hand, Michael is sounding more phlegmatic on his comeback, but there are also these signs of his swagger and his desire to throw his weight around.

At any rate, Schumi is getting there even if his ultimate pace is still a few tenths off. And think about it, if he had managed to get around Alonso and Button without getting hit, he could have been in a position to fight for the win. He did set 4th fastest lap after all in a damaged car. That should be the salient point about Schumi emerging from this race, not the fact that Timo Glock in the Virgin had the audacity to fight with him later on, or that Jaime Alguersuari’s Toro Rosso managed to hold him off for lap after lap.

Though we have covered the leading four teams first, that is not to understate how good Robert Kubica’s drive to 2nd place was. Who would have thought a car from outside the leading outfits could infiltrate the podium in the second race on sheer merit? For sure the Pole lucked in at the first corner, but he had to be there in the first place, and that was because he had got into the top ten for the second race in a row, having also topped the first free practice.

He actually came out from his stop for slicks ahead of Button, but he could not hold off the McLaren. More the point, once he was in the leading bunch, his pace was adequate, his defence steady and his tyre management perfect. Once the incentive and opportunity is there, Kubica’s class is undeniable. This result comes as a massive fillip for the Renault team and could well be a springboard that might lead to him consistently being the ‘best of the rest’ as the season progresses.

Vitaly Petrov’s rather enigmatic start to his F1 career continued. In Bahrain he was unimpressive prior to the race but seemed to come alive on the Sunday. Here, he was 5th in second free practice, but a complete mess in qualifying to take the unwanted mantle as the only man from the established teams to miss the Q1 cut. He then took advantage of the first corner chaos to vault up eight places, before a lazy spin into retirement on slicks on a damp track. Clearly, he needs to find a more consistent level.

Lost in the final results was that Vitantonio Liuzzi had snuck into 7th place, and now already has eight points on the board. Our season preview said he needed to score at least five to ten points this season, and he has already done that! He still lacks the ultimate pace of Adrian Sutil, but he has put in two solid race drives in the Force India that simply cannot be faulted. Sutil was in the top 10 in every pre-race session and got into Q3 again but misfortune struck again with an early engine problem.

From the first two races, on the whole it would seem to be Renault and Force India leading the midfield pack, just ahead of Williams with Toro Rosso and Sauber behind. That says a lot about how far Force India have come and confirms that the VJM03 does work on a wider range of circuits. The plan to run Paul di Resta in free practice is a real mystery though, as it robs one driver of crucial track time, the Scotsman could bin the car, and you worry that one time it will seriously affect Liuzzi or Sutil’s chances.

Liuzzi’s 7th place was also largely thanks to not pitting for a second set of soft slicks, whereas Rubens Barrichello did but could not find a way past the Force India at the end. 8th on the grid as well was also a good result but it is all as per the pre-season script for Williams right now. Renault and Force India have already shown us something of a surprise factor and may feasibly dream big, but Williams have not and it remains hard to see them doing so. Minor points seems to be their lot in life.

Nico Hulkenberg must of course be given due leeway for a rookie, but his inability to match Barrichello’s pace so far, especially in qualifying, has been somewhat unexpected. He had no chance to shine in the race either, taken out in that frightening first lap incident when he was slammed into by the wingless Kamui Kobayashi. It rounded off a most disappointing weekend for Kamui. It was his third case of front-wing damage, having had two already in free practice.

The first was his own fault when he clipped the bollard on the inside of turn 11, and in a weekend of over-driving he was a serial offender at the fast left-right kink at turns 11 and 12. The other seemed to have been a genuine failure whereas this third incident in the race may have result from a first-lap touch which is all too easy. Either way, it raises some serious questions about the structural rigidity of the Sauber front wing, because so far it has shown an alarming tendency to go AWOL at the slightest provocation.

Overall, it was a second poor weekend from Sauber. Pedro de la Rosa did not cover himself in glory either, blocking both Ferraris in free practice and being a moveable chicane in qualifying as well. It would be easy to suggest that the years away from the cut and thrust of a Grand Prix session had taken their toll. In the race, the other thing for which de la Rosa could be trusted for - tyre and pace management - is also what failed him, meaning he was pipped for the last point in the dying laps by Schumacher.

At Toro Rosso, Sebastien Buemi starred in practice and qualifying and with luck is showing signs he could sneak into Q3 at some stage, qualifying 12th here. He was the other victim of Kobayashi’s incident on the first lap, but Alguersuari upheld team pride during the race by withholding Schumacher for so long. Had he not made a slight mistake towards the end, he could have beaten the Mercedes for 10th. It’s a story to tell the kids, but on the whole Jaime’s pace cannot match Buemi’s at the moment.

Of the new teams, it was no surprise to see Lotus again being the best of the newcomers, both in terms of pace and in terms of reliability, although Virgin can match them for speed and Jarno Trulli suffered a hydraulic failure which meant that he did not end up starting the race. Interestingly, Kovalainen seems to have the upper hand over his Italian team-mate in one-lap speed, which was not expected given Trulli’s qualifying expertise, and he is getting the better of the race results.

Virgin was in the headlines for the wrong reasons, after it was confirmed that the fuel tank on the VR01 is not large enough to carry enough petrol to make the finish of races. That will require a major chassis overhaul which will cost money and development time, which puts the team further behind schedule. Meanwhile, reliability remains appalling. When the car is running, Glock is more able to get most out of it, while Lucas di Grassi is hamstrung by the lack of track time and it reflects in his confidence.

Just to show what Virgin is up against, HRT may have had the more obvious reliability issues, but Karun Chandhok made the race finish. He also got within 0.1s of Bruno Senna in Q1, and both were within 0.5s of di Grassi and within 107% of pole. That shows the potential which you suspect is there with a Dallara-built car. With more track time, HRT could well leap ahead of Virgin while they’re still stuck in square one, and maybe challenge Lotus for new team honours later in the season.