A new Formula One era began at the weekend and the Australian Grand Prix delivered precisely the exciting opener the sport demanded.
Albert Park hosted the first race under the 2026 rule changes with engines, chassis, tyres and fuel all adhering to controversial new regulations that have not gone down well, to say the least, with some leading drivers.
Nobody quite knew what to expect going in. By the time the chequered flag fell, one thing was clear – Mercedes had arrived and looked the team to beat.
George Russell took pole in qualifying, teammate Kimi Antonelli lined up alongside him, and the Silver Arrows went on to complete a dominant one-two before a packed grandstand.
Here are the best storylines from the first race of the new campaign.
Mercedes back in business
On the radio after securing pole, Russell was unambiguous: “Very nice, very nice. I like this car. I like this engine!”
But Sunday's race did not start cleanly. Russell's battery level was critically low and he was off the line sluggishly. Charles Leclerc's Ferrari had a ferocious launch advantage and surged from fourth to first through Turn 1. After losing the lead to Leclerc at the first corner, Russell traded advantage at the front with the Monegasque on six occasions inside a wild first nine laps.
The pivotal moment came on Lap 11 when Isack Hadjar's Red Bull lost power and triggered a Virtual Safety Car. In that narrow window, Mercedes struck with Russell and Antonelli pitting while Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton did not.
From that point, Russell was in control, winning by 15 seconds as Antonelli, just 19, brought it home second in a performance of real composure. A one-two start to the new era. “The most important feeling is so much contentment we feel as a team,” said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.
“We had such a long winning stretch, winning eight championships. Then a difficult period. But after a solid one-two, you feel you are fighting for a world title … [and] that Mercedes are back.”
Mixed emotions at Ferrari
Ferrari arrived with the second-quickest machine, a rocket off the line, and genuine ambitions. What they lacked was the strategic nerve to capitalise.
Leclerc's opening lap was thrilling to watch as he scythed from fourth to the lead in a single, decisive move. His early battle with Russell was the defining spectacle of the afternoon and a perfect advertisement for the new era.
But when the VSC arrived on Lap 11, Ferrari blinked. They kept both Leclerc and Hamilton out, choosing track position over the gift of a cheap pit stop. Hamilton made his feelings clear on team radio, “At least one of us should have come in!”
Team boss Frederic Vasseur was measured in his defence. “The pace of Mercedes was better than us,” he said. “When they pitted they were three, four tenths faster and they kept this pace all stint … I have no regrets on the strategy.”
Leclerc finished on the podium while Hamilton, who had qualified only seventh after a difficult Saturday, drove with real vigour and was closing on Leclerc in the final laps.
He left Melbourne cautiously encouraged. “We are right in the fight,” said Hamilton, whose problems during his first season in Ferrari red have been well documented. “I feel great," added the Briton. "We got a third and fourth and ultimately Mercedes were quicker than us.
“We need to see if stopping would have been better. I definitely thought we should have come in or, at least one of us, to cover the Mercedes. But the team did a great job overall.”
McLaren's crown slips
In his home race, Oscar Piastri did not even make it to the start line. On his reconnaissance lap, clipping the exit kerb at Turn 4 while shifting gears, the Australian received an unexpected surge of roughly 100 kilowatts of additional power that unsettled the car and sent him into the wall. “I was backwards before I'd even really had a chance to react,” he said.
In the race, Lando Norris, carrying the No 1 on his car, found himself unable to live with the leading cars. He had warned after qualifying: “We've come from the best cars ever made in Formula One, and the nicest to drive, to probably the worst.” Sunday proved him right.
He finished fifth, 51 seconds behind Russell, conceding afterwards that McLaren “need to improve the car quite a lot.” The reigning champions have considerable ground to recover.
Lindblad living the dream
Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad produced arguably the performance of the weekend when he became the third youngest F1 points scorer at 18 years and seven months – behind Antonelli and Red Bull's four-time world champion Max Verstappen.
From ninth on the grid, he produced a brilliant getaway and found himself, briefly, running third, wheel-to-wheel with Hamilton, his hero and a driver he had watched on television as a child.
“He was a big reason why I wanted to be here today. It was pretty nuts to race with him. There were a lot of pinch-me moments today,” he said. “I'm here to fight. When I'm in the car, I'm a ruthless competitor and I'm going to take every inch I can get and I think I showed that on lap one.”
He settled for eighth, with his performance eclipsed that of the more experienced teammate, Liam Lawson, who finished 13th and struggled for pace throughout.
Long road ahead for Aston Martin
Ahead of the race, Fernando Alonso had spoken of Aston Martin's enormous potential under the new regulations, despite the well-documented problems the team had experienced with their Honda power unit.
Those problems centred on vibrations so severe they had raised genuine concerns about driver welfare, with Adrian Newey warning his drivers could only manage limited stints before risking permanent nerve damage to their hands.
In Melbourne, Alonso started the race, retired in the pits, then remarkably rejoined after the team made changes to the car, only to park the car for good shortly after. Lance Stroll followed the same script. Two cars, two retirements, twice over. Newey's team have a very long road ahead.
Verstappen calls for action
Max Verstappen provided the race's most compelling subplot, surging from last on the grid after a Q1 software failure, all the way to sixth place at the finish.
But the Dutchman – who was scathing of the new rule changes during off-season, calling them “anti-racing” – again cast doubt on his long-term future.
“I love racing but you can only take so much,” Verstappen said on Sunday. “I think F1 and the FIA are willing to listen, but I hope there is some action.
“It is not that I am the only one saying it. We are not critical just to be critical. We are critical for a reason. We want it to be Formula One, proper Formula One on steroids, but today that wasn't the case."
