George Russell won the opening race of the 2026 Formula 1 season in Australia. The British driver finished first, with his Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli in second place. Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton finished third and fourth.
It was an exciting race in Melbourne. At the start, Leclerc moved from fourth on the grid to take the lead from Russell. The two drivers swapped positions several times in the early laps.
During a Virtual Safety Car, both Mercedes drivers made their pit stops, while the Ferrari drivers stayed out on track. Later, when Ferrari eventually stopped, Russell and Antonelli moved back to the front.
There were questions about strategy. Ferrari looked able to finish the race with only one stop, while Mercedes might have needed another stop. However, the Mercedes drivers managed to continue on their tyres until the end of the race.
Russell crossed the finish line 2.9 seconds ahead of Antonelli to take his sixth career win. This also gave Mercedes a strong 1-2 finish.
Leclerc finished third, while Hamilton was close behind in fourth. McLaren’s Lando Norris finished fifth after his teammate Oscar Piastri crashed before the race started and could not take part in his home Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen made an impressive recovery from 20th on the grid to finish sixth. Haas driver Ollie Bearman finished seventh, and Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad scored points in eighth place in his first Formula 1 race.
Gabriel Bortoleto finished ninth in Audi’s first race as a works team, and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly took the final point in tenth place.
Several drivers did not finish the race. Valtteri Bottas and Isack Hadjar retired earlier in the race. Aston Martin drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll both had problems and were not classified at the finish. Oscar Piastri and Nico Hülkenberg did not start the race.
After the race, Russell said he felt “incredible” after the tough battle at the start and thanked his team for building a strong car.
The Formula 1 season continues next week with the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.
