Last year Ferrari qualified 1. Carlos Martinez Jersey .4s slower than Mercedes around Melbourne. This time Ferrari qualified within 0.8s of the Mercedes pole time. Furthermore, last year Albert Park was the furthest off the pace Ferrari qualified all year (when expressed as a percentage). Although race two of 2015 was in Malaysia (placed much later in the 2016 calendar), at race three in Bahrain, the Ferrari qualifying deficit to Mercedes was down to 0.905s.Essentially, the Ferrari was around 0.5s per lap more competitive in Bahrain qualifying than it had been in Australia. If (an important if) the switch of tracks finds the same benefit for Ferrari this time around, it would suggest a Mercedes qualifying advantage in Bahrain of no more than 0.3s. Different season, different cars, but the patterns and traits of performance between the two cars does seem quite similar this year to last. The Mercedes advantage over Ferrari does appear to be bigger on Saturday than Sunday and it does partly seem related to how potent its qualifying engine mode is and partly to the Ferraris struggles to generate front tyre temperature early in a single lap. A Ferrari that can get to within 0.3s of a Mercedes in qualifying might very well be able to match its pace on race day.Until the red flag stoppage at Melbourne, Sebastian Vettel was of course leading for Ferrari and might have been expected to have won but for Alonsos race-stopping crash. But Vettels place had everything to do with the track positioning bought by his superb start and the mediocre ones of the Mercs.The comparison was further clouded by the different tyre choices made by each team during the race. Take these things out of the picture and it did appear that the Mercedes retained a performance advantage on race day - but by a smaller amount than in qualifying. Just like last year. Sebastian Vettel (left) led the Australian Grand Prix until the red flag There is potentially another similarity too. Last year, Ferrari ran their power units quite conservatively in Melbourne. But from Malaysia onwards through Bahrain and China, they felt confident enough to turn them up - and in those races they were at least on a par with Mercedes for race day horsepower, possibly even slightly ahead (this was before the Spain clarification on fuel flow interpretation).In Melbourne this year, Ferrari again was carefully managing their power units during the race. Kimi Raikkonen in particular could be observed varying the amount of electrical deployment, according to how defensive he needed to be.Something was giving Ferrari concern about being able to run with full deployment for extended periods. Its possible this was connected to Raikkonens turbo issues that subsequently forced him to retire, but Mercedes engineers looking at the numbers suspect that Ferrari were running their engines less aggressively than in Barcelona testing. Kimi Raikkonen had to retire his Ferrari on lap 23 of the Australian GP, after suffering a fire in his airbox If this was related to a specific reliability worry Ferrari had over a component and it can be resolved by the next race, then a return to full power in Bahrain could well be enough to allow Ferrari to fight Mercedes on pure performance - on race day at least.But longer term, a major focus of Ferraris attention will be on matching the power Mercedes have available for short bursts during qualifying. These extra engine modes are extremely potent and Mercedes development work during the winter - centred around extending the duration of combustion, thereby moving the detonation threshold yet further back, allowing more power for longer - has allowed them to become even more so.More than ever in the hybrid era, such developments have to be made jointly with the engine department, the fuel supplier and spark plug manufacturer. Although Ferrari appear to have a car capable of racing the Mercs, a breakthrough in qualifying performance is going to be needed before the Scuderia can control their races from the front, rather than relying on better starts or strategy to get them there. Nico Rosberg (left) won in Melbourne despite a poor start Yet even if they fail to make that step change this year, if they can regularly challenge the silver arrows, the respective dynamics of the driver line-ups of each team might yet offer Ferrari a realistic hope of stealing the title. Vettel is much more clearly a team No 1 than either of the Mercedes drivers. If - as happened in both 2014 and 15 - Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg takes points from each other while Vettel consistently finishes ahead of Raikkonen, it could be the crucial differentiator.Last year the Ferrari wasnt quite fast enough to make that matter. This year, it just might be.Dont miss the F1 Report for all the reaction and analysis from the Australian GP. Natalie Pinkham is joined by David Brabham and former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley on Wednesday at 8:30pm on Sky Sports F1. Every race live in 2016 Sky Sports F1 brings you every race live in 2016. Fast and easy online upgrade - click here. Also See: Brundle: Australia serves up a treat Every 2016 race live Custom St. Louis Cardinals Jerseys . 5 Trade Deadline is drawing closer and teams will be deciding on whether to buy or sell. Zach Duke Jersey .com) - American Madison Keys grabbed a first- round victory on Sunday in a rainy start to the Apia International Sydney tournament. http://www.baseballcardinalsauthority.com/ . In the days leading up to the draft, TSN.ca and TSN Radio basketball analyst Duane Watson looks at some of the names that will be headlining the event. Tonight, Michigans Nik Stauskas of Mississauga, Ontario.PRETORIA, South Africa -- Oscar Pistorius will undergo psychiatric evaluation after the judge ruled at his murder trial Wednesday that his state of mind when he killed his girlfriend should be assessed by experts, possibly delaying court proceedings for two months. The ruling was prompted by testimony by a psychiatrist on behalf of the defence that the double-amputee Olympic athlete has generalized anxiety disorder and that this may have influenced his judgment when he fatally shot Reeva Steenkamp through a toilet door in his home on Feb. 14, 2013. The chief prosecutor, Gerrie Nel, then requested psychiatric testing -- a move opposed by Pistorius chief lawyer. Judge Thokozile Masipa agreed with the prosecutor, saying it was important to independently assess Pistorius state of mind because the defence might now argue that he was not criminally responsible for the shooting because of his anxiety disorder. "The accused may not have raised the issue that he was not criminally responsible at the time of the incident in so many words, but evidence led on his behalf clearly raised the issue and cannot be ignored," the judge said. Pistorius will likely be evaluated by a panel of psychiatrists at a government facility. Pistorius says he shot Steenkamp by mistake in the pre-dawn hours, thinking there was an intruder in his home. His lawyers have regularly pointed to his fear of violent crime and vulnerability as an amputee as central to his account of a mistaken killing. After meeting with Pistorius on two occasions at the beginning of this month, Dr. Merryll Vorster testified this week that he was "hyper-vigilant" and constantly feared being attacked. But legal analysts said the defence teams decision to introduce Vorsters testimony may have backfired. John Welch, former deputy director of South Africas public prosecuting authority, said Pistorius lawyers may have called the psychiatrist to the stand at such a late stage in the trial to "remedy" the athletes own testimony, which has been viewed as unconvincing. But in testifying that Pistorius was anxious, felt vulnerable to crime and may not have intended to kill Steenkamp, Vorster possibly "went too far" in her descriiption of the psychiatric disorder, according to Welch. Enos Slaughter Jersey. Pistorius, 27, stood with his hands clasped in front of him in the courtroom as the judge explained her decision. He could be acquitted if the judge rules he was not criminally responsible for Steenkamps shooting because of a mental illness. A mental disorder could also be used by his defence for a lighter sentence in the event of a conviction. The prosecution says Pistorius killed Steenkamp intentionally after an argument. In asking for the psychiatric evaluation, Nel may be trying to remove grounds for appeal by the defence -- on the basis of a psychiatric disorder -- should he be convicted. Judge Masipa said the court would reconvene on Tuesday to decide on details regarding Pistorius period of observation. In South Africa, it is normally for 30 days. Masipa said it would be preferable that Pistorius be evaluated as an outpatient and return home each day after tests. He is free on bail after being charged with premeditated murder. After his tests, the experts who assess Pistorius would take additional time to compile a report and submit it to the court. That could take another month, raising the possibility of a two-month delay in the trial, which started March 3 and is in its eighth week of proceedings. The judge acknowledged that there would be a significant delay, but said it was necessary. "This is not about anyones convenience, but rather about whether justice has been served," Masipa said. Marius du Toit, a defence lawyer not involved in the case but following it closely, said a panel of three psychiatrists would provide the court with a report on Pistorius, and it may also deal with the issue of his fitness to stand trial at all. Despite the defence teams opposition to the psychiatric evaluation, Pistorius uncle, Arnold Pistorius, said outside the courthouse that the ruling reaffirmed the familys confidence in the justice system. "As a family, we are comforted by the thoroughness and detail of this judgment and Judge Masipas commitment, using every avenue, to ensure a fair trial," Arnold Pistorius said in his prepared statement. ------ Imray reported from Stellenbosch, South Africa. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '