Got up at 4:30am yesterday to watch the Australian GP (yes I know I’m mad). Glad to see Lewis Hamilton score another win, but was even more impressed by Sebastian Bourdais bringing back markers Torro Rosso up to 4th before his car expired just two laps from the end. And with all the millions F1 team spend preparing for a new season you think they could keep more than six cars running by the end of the race. The retirement rate was approaching farcical.

Having said that the removal of Traction Control has meant they need to be drivers again – well overdue in my opinion. Watching F1 cars slide about like that, and the occasional glorious four wheel drift, took me back to the 1970s and the likes of Ronnie Peterson and James Hunt (Boy that’s showing my age a bit).

Ryan Newman (#12) takes the Daytona 500 emerging from a caution filled stop-start last twenty lap sprint to snatch victory on the last lap ahead of team mate Kurt Bush (#2), a charging Tony Stewart (#20) and the dominant Kyle Bush (#18).

This is the first Daytona 500 victory for the Penske Dodge team, and combined with the strong showing of the Gibbs Toyota team may be an indication that the domiance of the Hendricks Chevrolet team is on the wane.

Overall a fun race, with a great finish, but not one for the ages.

At the three quarter mark Kyle Busch (#18) is still out front as the second caution of the race is thrown for debris. Clint Bower (#07) was challenging. Greg Biffle (#16) wins the race off pit road and takes the lead ahead of Busch with a resurgent Tony Stewart (#20) back up to third. Kurt Busch (#2) runs fourth with the ever present Dale Jr (#88) in fifth as we wait to go green.

At the half way mark Kyle Busch (#18) is back in the lead with Jeff Gordon (#24) challenging. Ryan Newman (#12) is up to third with Dale Earnhardt Jr (#88) and an out of sequence Kurt Busch (#2) also up at the front. After an 80th lap caution the field is once more bunched up.

 At this stage there has been plenty of passing with numerous lead changes. The new cars seem to be able to maneouvre around teh track with Kyle Bush in particular running different lines, sometimes even changing mid corner.  Busch is probably the most impressive runner at the moment, but may be being a little over agressive for this stage of the race.

The race is running at a fast pace with an average speed around 180 mph and so far caustion free. Denny Hamlin (#11) has just taken back the lead from team mate Kyle Busch (#18) who has come up from mid-field.  First lap leader Michael Waltrip (#55) has dropped to the back of the field.

At the front the lead continues to be contested by a breakaway group of cars including Hamlin, Busch, Jeff Gordon (#24), with Dale Earnhardt Jr (#88), Matt Kenseth (#17) and Jimmie Johson (#48) a little further back.