Hard to find clues after a damp day in Melbourne

Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.It was, Ferrari summarised perfectly, the day on which the 2012 Formula One season got under way in "indecipherable fashion". The start had been eagerly awaited after three weeks of inconclusive testing, with six world champions ready to do battle and a raft of new cars built to revised regulations. But as proceedings were twice affected by heavy rain, few emerged any the wiser about the true pecking order.
Perhaps one might have anticipated that Michael Schumacher would be fastest in his new Mercedes in the second session, after Jenson Button had set the fastest time of the day in the first, but a Force India second, Saubers third and fifth, a Caterham eighth, a Marussia 12th, the two Red Bulls 10th and 11th and the McLarens 15th and 16th? This was assuredly a difficult one to read.
"It's always nice to start the season with the quickest time of the day," Button said after lapping in 1m 27.560s in that first session once the circuit had dried out. "Our car feels very different compared with the last test – this circuit is different and the average corner speed is a lot lower, but the car is still working well for me.
Lewis Hamilton added: "It feels there or thereabouts," but perhaps Fernando Alonso came closest to the reality when he said: "There's no point looking at today's times, but I do expect to see a mixed-up grid for the race."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments