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Recap: 2013 Australian Formula One Grand Prix is all about the rubber [w/spoilers]

A pre-season full of talking points was swapped for a brand-new set of talking points after the running of the opening grand prix of the 2013 Formula One season. The consistency of the regulations from last year to this year and the triplicate dominance of Infiniti Red Bull Racing meant that no one would have been that surprised if the relative order of things remained the same. But teams found so many ways to switch things up that, in typical pre-season fashion, no one was ready to make any bets on in-season performance, and a couple of surprising players suffered the ignominy of getting it really wrong: McLaren knew it was in trouble from the very first test, while Williams drivers applauded their car as the best in years, only to have Pastor Maldonado call it "undriveable" on the very first day of practice in Melbourne.
And then there were those Pirellis, the Italian company talking up the fact that its super soft tires would only go off so quickly that it would force teams to pit at least twice during the race.
Even then, no one could have seen the first round of pit stops beginning on Lap 5.

Gooding's Pebble Beach auction tops $128 million in sales

While the million-dollar cars are now packed up for Monterey Car Week, the auction results keeping rolling in. Gooding & Co. set a two-day company record by moving over $128 million in beautiful classics during the event. Of the 115 lots that sold, three brought over $10 million, and 26 more went for over a million. In a surprise to no one, a Ferrari led the way when a 1961 250 GT SWB California Spider sold for $16.83 million. That was a new single-lot record for the auction house. In a close second place, a 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Speciale previously owned by famed auto designer Nuccio Bertone went for $16.5 million. Rounding out the top three, a 1982 Porsche 956 that won Le Mans in 1983 cleared $10.12 million. Porsche also grabbed fourth place with a 1960 RS60 going for $5.4 million, and rounding out the top five was a 1957 Ferrari 410 Superamerica Series II Coupe for $5.1 million. Check out the gallery above for a look at many of the beautiful vehicles in the sale. While the press release below lists the top sellers, you can check out the prices and info for all of the lots on Gooding's website, here. Gooding & Company's Two-Day Pebble Beach Auctions Realizes More Than $128 Million 3 cars sell above $10 million, 26 cars above $1 million New auction records broken for Ferrari and Porsche Pebble Beach, Calif. (August 17, 2015) – Gooding & Company, the official auction house of Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance®, realized more than $128 million at its Pebble Beach Auctions this weekend, resulting in a two-day sales company record. During the two-day sale, the auction house sold 115 of 129 lots, an 89% sale rate and their highest ever average price of $1,113,896 per car. During the auction weekend, an impressive 26 cars sold over the $1 million mark including three vehicles over $10 million. World records were broken as new market standards were set for Ferrari and Porsche, including a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spider (sold for $16,830,000), 1962 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Speciale (sold for $16,500,000), Le Mans-winning 1982 Porsche 956 (sold for $10,120,000), 1960 Porsche RS60 (sold for $5,400,000), 1957 Ferrari 410 Superamerica Series II Coupe (sold for $5,087,500), and a 1988 Porsche 959 Komfort (sold for $1,732,500). David Gooding, President of Gooding & Company: "New bench marks were set and our company hit a new record for highest two-day sale.

Watch how fans honored Michael Schumacher on his 45th birthday outside his hospital

Michael Schumacher remains in a medically induced coma six days after a skiing accident in the French Alps. While the racing legend spent his 45th birthday in the hospital, listed in stable but critical condition, racing fans from all over Europe descended upon the clinic in which he lies in Grenoble, France, to pay their respects.
The event was arranged by Ferrari, the manufacturer with which Schumacher is most often associated after winning 72 individual races for the Italian marque between 1996 and 2006. In total, Schumacher won 91 races, stood on the podium 155 times and won seven F1 Driver's Championships over the course of his illustrious 19-year career.
Schumacher's family was deeply touched by the outpouring of support and has issued a short statement thanking Ferrari fans for their "incredible sympathies." We've gathered a few videos together showing scenes of support from outside the hospital, and you can see them, along with the family's official statement, below.