The Silver Arrows is back! Mercedes finished in P1 and P2 in the Australian Grand Prix in Formula 1’s new rules era, with George Russell winning from teammate Kimi Antonelli while a bad call on strategy cost Ferrari’s challenge.
The race started with heartbreak for the home fans as local hero Oscar Piastri crashed on his lap making his way to the starting grid. The McLaren driver lost control of his MCL40 at the exit of Turn 4, and therefore unable to start the race – like Nico Hulkenberg – whose Audi R26 encountered a problem on his way to the grid.
As indicated by pre-season testing, the Ferraris had the quickest getaway. Charles Leclerc, from fourth, grabbed the lead away from polesitter Russell, leading Isack Hadjar as Antonelli dropped from second to seventh. Arvid Lindblad jumped from ninth to fourth ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who overtook the Racing Bulls and the Red Bull on his way to third.
Russell recovered and made his way past Leclerc on lap 2, on the run towards Turn 11. And yet it was not easy, as Leclerc enjoyed much better battery deployment on Lakeside Drive on the next lap and swept around the outside of the Mercedes in Turn 9.
On lap 8, as Max Verstappen made his way into the top ten from the back of the grid while Antonelli recovered to fourth, Russell kept pressuring Leclerc and outbraked him on the inside of Turn 3 – but Leclerc attacked by going around the outside with a move in Turn 9 as their energy management duel continued.
Russell hit back on the next lap in Turn 1 but had a big lock-up and could not stay ahead. By then, Hamilton and Antonelli had caught up with the leading duo.
Fifth-placed Hadjar retired with a technical issue on lap 12, causing the race to be neutralised by the virtual safety car. The incident promoted Lando Norris to sixth, with the defending world champion the leading frontrunner to pit straight away. Having started the race on hard tyres unlike most of the field on mediums, Verstappen stayed out and took sixth.
The Mercedes cars did pit on the following lap, switching to hard tyres, and rejoined in third and fifth, separated by Lindblad. Russell and Antonelli were respectively 12 seconds and 17 seconds down on race leader Leclerc. Now in second, Hamilton was unconvinced by Ferrari’s strategy: “At least one of us should have come in,” he suggested on the team radio.
Another retirement gave them the chance to do just that with another virtual safety car intervention, as Valtteri Bottas broke down on the inside of the last corner. Still, the Ferraris stayed out at the first time of asking, and the pitlane entry was subsequently closed. They were the only cars to stay out during both VSC sequences.
On lap 20, Russell’s gap to race leader Leclerc was down to eight seconds. The Mercedes was lapping 7.5 tenths faster than second-placed Hamilton on average.
Leclerc ended up pitting at the end of lap 25 and rejoined 16 seconds down on Russell, who started pressuring his former teammate on lap 27 and found a way back to the lead on the next lap. Hamilton pitted straight away and rejoined in fourth, with a 21-second gap on Russell, who now enjoyed a seven-second gap to Antonelli as his closest challenger.
The Mercedes driver was faster at that time and brought the gap down to five seconds in four laps – after which yet another virtual safety car intervention occurred due to debris from Sergio Perez on Lakeside Drive. The timing of the VSC was favourable to Russell, with Antonelli now six seconds down.
With ten laps remaining, the gaps were largely unchanged at the front. Russell led Antonelli by six seconds, Leclerc by 15 seconds and Hamilton by 19 seconds.
Mercedes therefore scored a comfortable 1-2 ahead of the Scuderia, with Russell victorious three seconds ahead of Antonelli. The race winner led Leclerc and Hamilton by 16 seconds.
The battle for fifth was contested between the champions Verstappen and Norris, with the McLaren driver coming out on top, but he was 52 seconds down on Russell.
Oliver Bearman prevailed in the midfield battle for Haas, leading Lindblad, Gabriel Bortoleto and Pierre Gasly as the remaining points scorers.
Sergio Perez finished P16 and virtually last on Cadillac’s Grand Prix debut, two laps down.
Aston Martin’s well-documented Honda powertrain issues meant completing the whole race was impossible due to engine vibrations, so Fernando Alonso pitted at the end of lap 13, rejoined ten laps down and retired definitively later.
Lance Stroll drove over half the race consecutively – which exceeded expectations – and pitted at the same time as his teammate retired, rejoining the race 15 laps down but still taking the chequered flag.
So after an underwhelming qualifying with the cars super clipping plus lift and coast on their push lap, the new rules have definitely provided some entertaining track action in the race. The start and the battle between Leclerc and Russell was the highlight. So a positive start in the 2026-spec regulations.
Australian Grand Prix, race results:
1 George Russell Mercedes 1:23:06.801
2 Kimi Antonelli Mercedes +2.974s
3 Chalres Leclerc Ferrari +15.519s
4 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +16.144s
5 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes +51.741s
6 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford +54.617s
7 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari +1 lap
8 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford +1 lap
9 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +1 lap
10 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes +1 lap
11 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari +1 lap
12 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes +1 lap
13 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls-Ford +1 lap
14 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes +2 lap
15 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes +2 laps
16 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari +3 laps
17 Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda +15 laps
Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda DNF
Valterri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari DNF
Isack Hadjar Red Bull-Ford DNF
Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes DNS
Nico Hulkenberg Audi DNS
George Russell claimed victory in the 2026 season-opening Australian Grand Prix, the Briton leading team mate Kimi Antonelli to secure a Mercedes 1-2 ahead of the Ferrari duo in an action-packed event that saw the Silver Arrows make a one-stop strategy work to their favour.
A thrilling start to the race saw Charles Leclerc surge forwards from P4 on the grid, seizing the lead from Russell before the two continued to swap positions over the next few laps. Both Mercedes cars subsequently pitted when a Virtual Safety Car was deployed due to Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar pulling off the track – while the Ferraris opted to stay out.
Another VSC phase followed due to the retirement of Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas, during which Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton again remained out on track. When the Scuderia’s drivers later made their stops, Russell and Antonelli returned to the front – leading to questions over how each team’s strategy calls would unfold, given that Ferrari looked likely to run until the end of the race while Mercedes may potentially have to stop again.
Despite their ageing tyres, the Silver Arrows appeared to be staying out until the chequered flag, with the Scuderia pair having not closed in enough to pressure the leading duo into making another stop – and the plan worked, with Russell crossing the line 2.9s ahead of Antonelli to secure a sixth career victory.
Leclerc and Hamilton were forced to settle for third and fourth, with reigning World Champion Lando Norris following in fifth for McLaren – the Briton acting as the squad’s sole runner after Oscar Piastri spun off track en route to the grid before the race had started, meaning that the local favourite could not participate in his home event.
Max Verstappen – also the only car in his team to take the chequered flag following Hadjar’s retirement – climbed up to sixth, marking an impressive recovery for the Red Bull driver from 20th place, while Haas’ Ollie Bearman took seventh and rookie Arvid Lindblad secured points on his debut, the Racing Bulls driver claiming eighth place.
Gabriel Bortoleto was ninth in Audi’s first race as a works outfit, with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly claiming the final point on offer in 10th. The Frenchman’s countryman Esteban Ocon just missed out in 11th for Haas, ahead of Williams’ Alex Albon and the Racing Bulls of Liam Lawson.
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/russell-wins-action-packed-australian-gp-from-antonelli-as-mercedes-secure-1.4WRxPAtF4dFtrKCsWIiQX2
McLaren driver Oscar Piastri says he is “shocked and surprised” by his pre-race crash that left him unable to take the start of Formula 1’s Australian Grand Prix as he received an unexpected power spike from his engine.
Around 40 minutes before the race, Piastri left the garage for the usual reconnaissance laps to the grid as teams conduct their final checks. But coming out of the Turn 4 left-hander, Piastri suddenly lost control over his McLaren as he crossed the exit kerbs, with his MCL40 spinning and veering into the wall on drivers’ left.
Fifth-place qualifier Piastri escaped without injury, but destroyed the front-end of his McLaren, with terminal damage to his right-front wheel and suspension, forcing the Australian to park his car on the spot as he dejectedly walked away from the scene.
Making his first comments after the incident, Piastri said he was “shocked and surprised” by how suddenly he lost the car.
“I’m just disappointed,” he said. “A scenario like that just shouldn’t happen. So, it’s obviously very disappointing.
“I mean, just shock and surprise, really. I was backwards before I’d even really had a chance to react. It all happened pretty quick. But crashing out of the race or trying to get to the race is a situation that shouldn’t happen.”
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/oscar-piastri-had-100kw-extra-power-i-didnt-expect-in-australian-gp-pre-race-crash/10803280/
Former Aston Martin strategist and Sky Sports F1 analyst Bernie Collins has argued that Ferrari’s decision not to pit under virtual safety car conditions during the Australian Grand Prix will raise questions.
Ferrari had a strong start to the race at Albert Park. Charles Leclerc took the lead from polesitter George Russell at the start and both the Monegasque driver and his team-mate Lewis Hamilton applied pressure to the Mercedes driver in the opening laps.
But on lap 12, Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar stopped on the side of the track due to a technical failure. While Mercedes, and the majority of the grid, made the most of the VSC conditions to pit, Ferrari opted to keep both drivers out. “At least one of us should have come in!” Hamilton said over the team radio.
On lap 19, Valtteri Bottas retired from the race and caused another VSC, but the Maranello outfit still stayed out.
“Lewis Hamilton was quite strong on the radio, particularly for that first VSC saying, ‘Why didn’t we do one car at least?’ I was surprised actually, initially, that Mercedes stacked because they were quite close together, but they were pretty confident in what they wanted to do,” Collins told Sky Sports F1.
“And then at the second VSC, well, I tried to go through the numbers quickly. Charles Leclerc was just at the safety car line when it was released, and Lewis Hamilton was a bit further back. But the yellow flag had been out for 19 seconds at that point. So potentially for Lewis, there was time for Ferrari to react. And that’ll raise some questions there.”
Russell went on to win the first race of the season with his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli joining him on the podium in second place and Leclerc rounding out the trio.
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/ferrari-will-face-questions-after-vsc-strategy-call-in-australian-gp-says-bernie-collins/10803328/
Australian Grand Prix winner George Russell put an off-kilter start to the first Formula 1 race of the year down to having no battery power left on the grid, opening the door to Charles Leclerc at the start.
Both Russell and team-mate Kimi Antonelli endured difficult starts to the race at Albert Park. Russell slipped to second as Leclerc made a fast start to grab the lead, while Antonelli dropped to seventh as he was swarmed by the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Arvid Lindblad, and Isack Hadjar.
Although Russell needed to recover and duly battled with Leclerc for the lead in the opening laps – a battle that, initially, he appeared to lose – the appearance of the virtual safety car for Hadjar’s stopped Red Bull ensured that Russell could stop relatively cheaply.
Ferrari ultimately did not respond in either of the earlier VSC periods, allowing Mercedes to move back into first and second.
Russell said that, after the start, it was difficult to hang onto the lead owing to the different deployment strategies used early in the race – and also with the straight-line mode causing understeer out of Turn 8.
“I’m feeling incredible. It was a hell of a fight at the beginning,” Russell said.
“We knew it was going to be challenging. I got on the grid and I saw my battery level – I had nothing in the tank! I made a bad start and then obviously there were some really tight battles with Charles.
“We had this suspicion that it was gonna be a bit of a yo-yo effect and as soon as one of us got in front, it just felt impossible to hold it.
“Obviously, with this straight mode we lose a lot of the front end on the car, so we’re sort of just understeering a lot around these corners. So I’m sure maybe the FIA are going to have to improve that a little bit because it was a bit sketchy.”
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/george-russell-nothing-in-the-tank-to-fend-off-leclerc-at-australian-gp-start/10803326/
George Russell praised Mercedes’ hard work as he beat Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc to victory in the Australian Grand Prix, celebrating that their strong showing in the opening round has “been a long time coming”.
The 28-year-old stormed to a dominant pole position in Saturday’s Qualifying hour, eking out an advantage of three-tenths over his team mate, with his next closest rival in Isack Hadjar another half a second adrift.
But at lights out, Russell faced a challenge from Leclerc, who charged through from P4 to claim the lead of the race at Turn 1 and kick off a gripping battle between the pair. They exchanged first place multiple times over the first 10 laps, only easing off when Hadjar pulled onto the grass to prompt a Virtual Safety Car.
Speaking after the race, Russell said: “I’m feeling incredible. It was a hell of a fight at the beginning. We knew it was going to be challenging.
“I got on the grid, saw my battery level had nothing in the tank, made a bad start and then obviously [had] some really tight battles with Charles, so I was really glad to cross the finish line.”
Opting to pit both cars in the slower speed conditions, the Silver Arrows ultimately took the chequered flag ahead of both Ferrari drivers, with the Scuderia choosing to stay out and extend their first stint on the medium tyres.
Russell reported over the radio that he felt comfortable attempting the one-stop strategy, which paid off – once he passed Lewis Hamilton on track, he faced little pressure in the lead and finished 5s ahead of Antonelli.
“Honestly, thank you so much to the whole team because it’s been a long time coming to have this car beneath us and we couldn’t start off in a better way,” the Briton added. “We had this suspicion that it was going to be a bit of a yo-yo effect, and as soon as one of us got in front, it just felt impossible to hold it.
“With this Straight Mode we lose a lot of the front end on the car so we’re sort of just understeering a lot around these corners. It was a bit sketchy, but I made it in one piece and I’m just glad to be 1-2.”
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/its-been-a-long-time-coming-russell-hails-incredible-victory-in-australian.19L6pQbeA3TWcVxJR2gZ9n
Former Formula 1 driver Anthony Davidson and 2009 champion Jenson Button have reacted to Franco Colapinto’s “scary” near miss with Liam Lawson at the start of the Australian Grand Prix.
Colapinto, who started from 16th on the grid, quickly gained on Lawson at the start of the race as the New Zealander struggled to launch. Lawson had barely moved from the P8 grid box, forcing the Alpine driver to quickly dash to the right of the New Zealander while avoiding crashing into the wall. Lawson later confirmed that he “lost all power” at the start.
While speaking to the media after the race, Colapinto said: “At the start we almost had a massive shunt with Liam as he got stuck on the grid and I was really lucky to go through that lap one. I was really, really lucky.”
Davidson reviewed Colapinto’s onboard footage as part of the post-race analysis on Sky Sports F1.
“Wow. It’s like he’s got cat-like reactions here,” he said. “I mean if I now play it in slow motion, watch what he does on the wheel. How on earth he avoided the rear wheel and the wall is beyond me. It’s amazing. I could watch that a thousand times over. I’ll never get over that.
“How there wasn’t a crash there. I mean, we all expected some poor getaways, but wow he was completely blinded by what happened there with poor old Liam Lawson.”
He added, while watching the close call from Lawson’s point of view: “Oh dear, so he was actually moving. Eyes everywhere. He’s looking in the left and right mirrors, but… Martin Brundle called it at the start of the race that that’s the most fearful time for a driver, knowing that your car may not get off the line and you could be just at a standstill and a roadblock for other cars thundering up behind you.”
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/franco-colapinto-praised-for-cat-like-reactions-after-avoiding-liam-lawson-crash-in-australia/10803400/
Lewis Hamilton has admitted that Ferrari still has a lot of work to do to catch up to Mercedes, but insisted that it is “not impossible”.
Both Hamilton and his Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc had incredibly strong starts to the Australian Grand Prix. The Monegasque driver took the lead from George Russell at the race start and the first handful of laps saw a strong battle between the two drivers. Hamilton was also in the mix, following closely behind after pulling himself from a seventh place start.
When two separate incidents caused virtual safety cars, the Maranello outfit decided not to pit both Leclerc and Hamilton. While the seven-time champion questioned the decision at the time, he explained after the race that he would review it.
“I have to go back and have a look but I’m generally really proud of the team,” Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. “They have done an amazing job to get the car to where it is. Of course, we are not as fast as Mercedes and we have work to do, but we are right in the fight.
“It was a really fun race and it felt good for me. A couple more laps and I would have had Charles, so I had great pace. Lots of positives to take from today.”
When asked if the Australian Grand Prix was a true representation of Ferrari’s pace, he added: “All weekend I’ve been really strong. Qualifying didn’t show the true pace. We had a few problems through qualifying which meant I was further back than I should have been.
“We went into today and none of us really knew what the true pace would be but I felt great from the get-go.
“There’s lots of positives but we have a lot of work to do to catch Mercedes but it’s not impossible. I believe we can close the gap. It’s not going to be easy, got a lot of work to do because it’s quite significant, particularly on a single lap.
“We need to find out whether it’s power, or battery power, but the cars are just as quick through the corners so we need to keep pushing.”
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/lewis-hamilton-positive-on-ferrari-pace-a-lot-of-work-to-do-to-catch-mercedes-but-not-impossible/10803364/