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2015 Australian Grand Prix all about grooves and trenches [spoilers]

We can't remember the last time 90 percent of the action in Formula One had nothing to do with cars setting timed laps. Yet that's was the situation at the Australian Grand Prix, continuing the antics from a scarcely believable off-season with blow-ups, driver and team absences, a lawsuit, and a clear need for some teams to get down and give us 50 pit stops. Nothing much has changed from a regulation standpoint, and at the front of the field nothing has changed at all. Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes-AMG Petronas claimed the first position on the grid like someone put a sign on it that read, "Reserved for Mr. Hamilton;" teammate Nico Rosberg was 0.6 behind in second, Felipe Massa in the Williams was 1.4 seconds back in third. Sebastian Vettel proved that Ferrari didn't do another Groundhog Day routine this off-season, slotting into fourth. His teammate Kimi Raikkonen was not even four-hundredths of a second behind, ahead of Valtteri Bottas in the second Williams, Daniel Ricciardo in the first Infiniti Red Bull Racing, and rookie Carlos Sainz, Jr. in the first Toro Rosso. Lotus, now powered by Mercedes, got both cars into the top ten with Romain Grosjean in ninth, Pastor Maldonado in the final spot. However, even though the regulations are almost all carryover, in actual fact, everything has changed this year. Mercedes is even faster. Renault is even worse. Ferrari and Lotus are a lot better. Toro Rosso is looking like anything but a junior team. And McLaren is – well, let's not even get into that yet. Furthermore, this weekend was shambles: 15 cars started the race, the smallest naturally-occurring grid since 1963. Manor couldn't get its cars ready before qualifying. Bottas had to pull out after qualifying when he tore a disc in his back and couldn't pass the medical clearance tests. The gearbox in Daniil Kvyat's Red Bull gave out on the lap from the pit to the grid, and to give misery some company, the Honda in Kevin Magnussen's McLaren blew up on the same lap. When the lights went out, Hamilton ran away and was more than a second ahead of his teammate at the end of Lap 1. The advantage disappeared, though, because behind him, at the first corner, we got our first pile-up. As Raikkonen drove around the outside of Vettel at the right-hand Turn 1 it looked like Vettel, going over the kerbing, hopped to his left and bounced into Raikkonen.

FCA delays distribution of Ferrari shares

Even if you can't afford an actual Ferrari, soon you can own a part of the famous company thanks to its upcoming initial public offering. FCA will put 10 percent of the Prancing Horse on the market in the third quarter of this year. However to reap extra money for 2015's bottom line, the rest of the sports-car maker's stock will remain undistributed for a little longer. According to Automotive News, the strategy is quite simple to understand. FCA is holding off until the first quarter of 2016 to divvy up the remaining Ferrari stock to shareholders. By doing so, the automaker gets to claim 80 percent of the Prancing Horse's profits for its 2015 financial numbers. While FCA is already showing strong results through Q1 2015, being able to add extra cash on the balance sheet is always a plus. FCA hasn't set a specific date for the IPO, but Ferrari stock was announced to be traded in the US and possibly on a European exchange, as well. According to Automotive News, FCA currently owns 90 percent of the company, and Piero Ferrari has the remaining 10 percent, which he isn't selling. Related Video:

Ferrari issues stop-sale order on 488 GTB for fire risk

The Basics: Ferrari North America has issued a stop-sale notice to its dealers regarding 2016 models of the new 488 GTB. The Problem: As with the earlier recall of the California T, the issue stems from low-pressure fuel line that may not connect properly to the feed pipe of the fuel pump. That could cause a fuel leak in the engine compartment, which could in turn start a fire. Injuries/Deaths: None reported. The fix: Dealers will need to replace the fuel line assembly. If you own one: All the problematic units of the 488 are in dealer hands. According to the statement below from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, "no un-remedied Ferrari 488 vehicles have been sold to the public." Ferrari S.p.A. informed Ferrari North America, Inc. (FNA) of the possible defect on the low pressure fuel line connection of the fuel pump provided by Ferrari's supplier Dytech – Dynamic Fluid Technologies S.p.A. on 11/17/15. Ferrari S.p.A. has informed FNA that during a routine pressure check for Assembly Line Testing on 11/04/15, they found a small air leak on the above described pipe connection. On 11/05/15 Ferrari S.p.A. extended their testing to evaluate vehicles that had been produced with the same batch of low pressure fuel lines. On 11/17/15 Ferrari S.p.A. concluded the investigatory testing and determined that the fuel vapor leak was a safety defect. With regard to the Ferrari 488 vehicles, on or about December 10, 2016 Ferrari determined that affected vehicles had left our control bound for various Ferrari dealers. We have notified our dealer network with a "Stop Sale" Notice informing them that this recall must be performed before the affected vehicles are sold to customers. It is important to note that no un-remedied Ferrari 488 vehicles have been sold to the public.