Hamilton has positive start despite Mercedes dominance

Mercedes driver George Russell claimed victory in the opening race of the 2026 Formula One season after a dramatic Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.

Russell completed the fifty-eight lap race ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli to secure a dominant one-two finish for Mercedes, while Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc completed the podium in third.

“I’m feeling incredible,” Russell said after the race.

“It was a hell of a fight at the beginning. We knew it was going to be challenging. I got on the grid, I saw my battery level had nothing in the tank, made a bad start, and then some really tight battles with Charles, so I was really glad to cross the finish line.”

It marks a dream start for the Brackley-based team under Formula One’s latest regulations and positions Mercedes as the early benchmark of the new era.

Ferrari’s Sir Lewis Hamilton finished fourth after a strong recovery drive, followed by McLaren’s Lando Norris in fifth and Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen in sixth.

Russell praised the work done by Mercedes during the off-season.

“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 have started off in a better way.”

Chaotic opening as Leclerc launches forward

The race began with drama even before the formation lap when home favourite Oscar Piastri crashed heavily on his way to the starting grid.

The McLaren driver lost traction exiting Turn Four when his right rear tyre clipped the kerb, sending the car into the wall and causing significant damage to the side and front of the car. Piastri was able to walk away from the incident.

When the lights went out, Leclerc made a stunning start from fourth place, launching into the lead before the field reached the first corner.

Hamilton also made early progress, climbing from seventh to fifth and then into third by the end of the opening lap.

Russell soon fought back, reclaiming the lead from Leclerc while Hamilton set the fastest lap as the three front runners battled closely in the early stages.

Leclerc responded immediately, retaking the lead on the following lap by deploying his energy perfectly on the straight.

By lap nine the battle between Russell and Leclerc allowed Hamilton to close rapidly, bringing three of the sport’s biggest names into an early race fight.

Strategy begins to shape the race

The first strategic twist came on lap twelve when a Virtual Safety Car was deployed after Red Bull Racing driver Isack Hadjar stopped on track with a mechanical failure.

Mercedes reacted instantly.

Both Russell and Antonelli pitted during the Virtual Safety Car while Ferrari chose to keep both drivers out.

That decision left Leclerc leading the race with Hamilton promoted to second place when the race resumed on lap fourteen.

Meanwhile Verstappen, who had started twentieth after crashing in qualifying, was already up to sixth place after beginning the race on hard tyres.

A second Virtual Safety Car was deployed on lap eighteen after the Cadillac of Valtteri Bottas broke down on track.

Verstappen made his first pit stop on lap nineteen as the race resumed.

Mercedes regain control

Strategy began to swing the race back toward Mercedes as the first pit stop cycle unfolded.

By the midpoint of the race Russell and Antonelli had worked their way back into third and fourth positions while Ferrari’s two drivers still needed to pit.

Leclerc eventually pitted at the end of lap twenty five, handing the race lead temporarily to Hamilton.

Russell quickly closed the gap and passed Hamilton on lap twenty eight before Hamilton made his own stop at the end of that lap and rejoined the race in fourth place.

At that stage of the race Russell led ahead of Antonelli, Leclerc and Hamilton, with Norris in fifth and Verstappen in sixth.

Another Virtual Safety Car was deployed on lap thirty four to clear debris from the circuit.

Norris pitted during the neutralisation which temporarily allowed Verstappen to move up to fifth place before the McLaren driver began charging back through the field.

By lap thirty eight Norris had climbed to seventh and moved into sixth place a lap later.

Verstappen made his second pit stop on lap forty two and rejoined in sixth position with Norris moving up to fifth.

Antonelli recovers for second

Mercedes rookie Antonelli produced one of the standout performances of the race after recovering from a poor start to finish second.

“It’s the best start we could have wished for,” he said.

“Unfortunately the start was really bad and I lost a lot of places and I had to recover.

“Overall it was a good race. The pace was very strong, especially at the end.”

Antonelli also highlighted how the new energy deployment systems are shaping racing in the sport’s latest technical era.

“The racing was incredible in the first few laps. The Overtake Mode is so powerful that it can give a lot of action.”

Ferrari battle hard for podium

Leclerc completed the podium after a challenging race in which drivers had to carefully manage energy deployment and overtaking opportunities.

“It was a very tricky race,” he admitted.

“At the start none of us knew what to expect with the fights and the energy. You don’t know when your battery will cut on the straights, so while defending there are massive speed differences.”

Despite the challenges, the Ferrari driver was satisfied with the result.

“P3 was the best we could do today.”

Top ten finishers

Behind the podium finishers and Hamilton in fourth place, Norris completed the top five for McLaren.

Verstappen finished sixth after recovering from the back of the grid, while Haas driver Oliver Bearman secured seventh.

Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad finished eighth ahead of Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto in ninth.

Alpine driver Pierre Gasly completed the top ten as the new Formula One season began with Mercedes firmly setting the early pace.

The result gives Russell the early lead in the drivers’ championship as Formula One now heads to China for the second round of the season.

Full official results: https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2026/races/1279/australia/race-result