AT&T Williams F1

Want to know what it feels like to drive around the glamorous streets of Monaco or high speed Silverstone in a Formula One car? Well now you can with our flyby track simulations, courtesy of our partner, Allianz.

The short video previews, which go live on the site on the Tuesday prior to every Grand Prix weekend, will guide you around the 18 circuits that feature on this year's calendar. Seen from within the cockpit, the flybys offer an insight into how an F1 driver navigates his way round some of the fastest and most challenging tracks in the world.

Round One of the Championship once again takes the Formula One circus to the 5.303km Albert Park track, one of the few street circuits on the calendar and therefore used by everyday road traffic when Formula One isn’t in town. As a result, drivers are faced with minimal grip levels during the race weekend’s opening sessions, combined with the recent ban on traction control, the circuit’s limited run-off areas may claim some unprecedented victims over the weekend before grip levels improve as the cars lay rubber.

On track, Albert Park blends a testing mix of short straights (on which the drivers will reach speeds in excess of 300km/h and spend 70% of the lap at full throttle), interspersed with 16 slow and medium speed corners, which will demand nearly 3,500 gear changes during the race.

Torque to power the cars out of the corners, a balanced set-up, a robust gearbox and stability under braking are therefore all essential components to achieve a successful lap during qualifying and a strong result at the Australian Grand Prix.