2026 Australian GP, race results: Mercedes 1-2, Russell beats Kimi. Ferrari on the podium with Leclerc, Hamilton 4th

F1 Australia, the GP standings

F1 Australia, the GP report

Now it’s official: Formula 1 restarts with Mercedes. After the talk and controversy of recent months, the track reaffirms the superiority of the Brackley team, which in Melbourne defends the 1-2 in qualifying and secures the first one-two finish of the year: George Russell leads Kimi Antonelli and establishes himself as the driver to beat for 2026.

Read more Roll of Honour Australian GP

Ferrari is currently clearly the second force and secures third and fourth place with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. The Scuderia is the only one that manages to challenge the W17: the smaller turbo allows the two Ferrari drivers to recover positions at the start, with the Monegasque moving from fourth to first as early as Turn 1. Leclerc then starts a great battle with Russell, confirming the competitiveness of the SF-26 with a full fuel load: a fight that, to be fair, has a strong artificial component (the Ferrari driver himself joked about the boost on the radio, stating that it felt like picking up a mushroom in Mario Kart) but at least has the merit of livening up the first part of the race. Not everyone will like it, but it is the path taken by the new F1.

For Russell, it is the sixth victory of his career. A success perhaps made easier by Ferrari‘s choice not to pit under the Virtual Safety Car for Isack Hadjar’s engine failure. Mercedes pits both the Briton and Antonelli, the Scuderia keeps track position and does not diversify the strategy between Leclerc and Hamilton. It’s hard to say if a different path would have allowed them to fight for the victory, but perhaps there was potential for a double podium. Instead, a good Antonelli makes it to the podium, making up for an uncertain start and starring in a solid GP, finishing just three seconds behind his more highly-rated teammate.

Also in the top 5 is Lando Norris in a McLaren light years away from the top (a 50-second gap from Mercedes). The papaya team’s Sunday starts very badly, with Oscar Piastri out on the formation lap, and ends in anonymity: be careful, however, about excluding them from the fight because they have shown enormous improvements in every season under the leadership of Andrea Stella. The world champion finishes ahead of Max Verstappen (who nonetheless made a great comeback from 20th place), while Bearman, Lindblad (an excellent debut for the Briton), Bortoleto, and Gasly also score points. Cadillac remains at the back of the pack – Sergio Perez finishes three laps behind the leader – along with Aston Martin, which treats the GP like a test, stopping Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll for about ten laps before sending them back out on track.

Read more 2026 Constructors’ Championship: the standings after the Australian GP

F1 Australia, the GP live coverage

You can relive the excitement of the Melbourne race with our live report.

The next event

F1 returns to the track next week with the event in China. The first Sprint weekend of the season will be held in Shanghai, with practice scheduled for the Italian night between Thursday 12th and Friday 13th (starting at 4:30). Friday at 8:30 the Sprint Qualifying which determines the starting grid for the short race (start in the night between Friday and Saturday, at 4:00). Saturday at 8:00 Qualifying, the Sunday GP will start at the same time.

Read more Russell is enjoying it: “I like this car, I like this engine”