George Russell Wins An Interesting & Entertaining Australian Grand Prix

Peter Molloy

March 8, 2026

George Russell survived multiple lead changes and an entertaining early race to win the first grand prix of the new regulations on Sunday (March 8). Kimi Anotnelli finished in second, and the two Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton finished third and fourth.

“It was a hell of a fight at the beginning,” Russell said after the race. “There were some really tight battles with Charles. We had this suspicion that it was going to be a yo-yo effect.”

Max Verstappen came from 20th on the grid to finish in sixth, behind Lando Norris in fifth. Oliver Bearman finished a strong and unacclaimed weekend for Haas in seventh, followed by an encouraging weekend for rookie Arvid Lindblad in eighth. Gabriel Bortoleto earned ninth for a new-to-F1 team, Audi, with Pierre Gasly grabbing the last points-paying position in tenth.

Following Max Verstappen’s unexpected crash and exit from qualifying yesterday, hometown hero Oscar Piastri also clonked out with an uncharacteristic crash on his way to the grid, losing control through turn four and hitting the barriers hard. Teammate Norris immediately asked what happened, suggesting that understanding of these new engines is still very much in its infancy.

The Mercedes of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli locked out the front row, with Russell’s pole lap on Saturday being almost eight tenths ahead of Isack Hadjar’s Red Bull.

Charles Leclerc started from fourth, and speculation about Ferrari’s ability to jump off the line raised many questions about how the start would pan out.

The beliefs turned out to be true: the Leclerc got a much better start and leapt into first place from fourth on the grid. Hamilton also enjoyed a strong jump, bounding from seventh into third.

By the end of the second lap, Russell passed Hamilton and Leclerc to take first place, using his Mercedes’ superior battery energy. One lap later, Leclerc went back into first place, possibly taking advantage of Russell having used more battery. Meanwhile, Hamilton was in third place, stalking Russell.

After five laps, it was a Ferrari/Mercedes battle in the top three, with Hadjar running in fourth. Kimi Antonelli was in fifth.

By lap 8, Verstappen had made his way from his starting place of 20 to 11th. Meanwhile, Russell passed Leclerc to take the lead on turn three, and Leclerc went back into the lead through the turn nine/ten complex.

On the following lap, Russell locked up into turn one, flat-spotting his tires, giving Hamilton a sniff for second place. Antonelli had also passed Hadjar for fourth place, and was joining the top three runners.

By the start of lap 10, the running order was Leclerc, Russell, Hamilton, and Antonelli, with around one second between each car.

On lap 12, the Red Bull of Hadjar stopped at the side of the track with smoke pouring from the back of his car. The sister Red Bull of Verstappen now held seventh place.

A virtual safety car was called for Hadjar’s misfortune and many cars took to the pits for fresh rubber. The two Ferraris stayed on track, while the two Mercedes jumped into the pits.

When the virtual safety car ended, the running order was Leclerc, Hamilton, Russell, Lindblad, Antonelli, and Verstappen. The two Mercedes were the only cars that had pitted, and Hamilton was complaining that they should have stopped as well, questioning Ferrari’s strategy.

On lap 18, Valtteri Bottas wound up marooned in his Cadillac near the entrance to the pit lane, causing another virtual safety car. This period gave Ferrari a second opportunity to stop, but the pit lane was closed due to an obstruction. Ferrari was hoping for another chance to pit.

When the safety car ended, Verstappen was challenging rookie Lindblad for sixth place and passed him one lap later. Verstappen’s Red Bull was then closing the gap to World Champion Norris, who was running in fifth.

George Russell, now in third place and on fresher tires, was also closing down the gap to Hamilton.

On lap 25, Leclerc hit the pits, effectively losing 10 seconds of lap time to Mercedes for not stopping under safety car conditions. When he rejoined, he was 7.6 seconds behind Antonelli. However, there was speculation that Mercedes would have to stop twice, while Ferrari could now go all the way to the end.

At the end of lap 28, George Russell passed Lewis Hamilton to take the lead. Hamilton took to the pits one lap later. Russell reported that “a one stop is viable,” but that would have meant 44 laps on the same set of tires.

Lap 33, and Verstappen was within one second of Norris, indicating that the Red Bull had much better race pace than the McLaren. Norris was called into the pits, giving Verstappen the place without needing an on-track battle.

A battle of the wills had developed at the front. The two Mercedes led, but had stopped early. The two Ferraris stopped much later, so their newer tires meant that Mercedes either needed to hold out, or stop again – ideally under a safety car.

On lap 42, Verstappen stopped for a second time. That gave Norris P5 again, but Verstappen rejoined just 3 seconds behind. He was the Fastest car on track, so an on-track battle between Verstappen and Norris was back on the cards.

Verstappen was unable to take that final position, despite a late charge. Nonetheless, the result gave hope for Red Bull through the rest of the season.

At the front, Mercedes held on with a single stop strategy to take first and second. It was an ominous sign, but less so than what qualifying suggested. Ferrari took a different approach on race strategy, and that could have made the difference.

Looking forward, there are even more questions, but the entertainment factor was certainly there. At least, for now.

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