We knew this season was going to be unpredictable, but based on the Australian opener, that might have been something of an understatement. We’ve enjoyed the track action – now it’s time to let the numbers do the talking…
• McLaren’s Lando Norris took his fifth career win today.
• As a result he leads the Drivers’ Championship for the first time.
• Norris is the first McLaren driver to lead the Championship since Lewis Hamilton after the 2012 Canadian Grand Prix.
REPORT: Norris beats Verstappen to victory in dramatic Australian GP opener amid late-race chaos
• He ends Max Verstappen’s 1,029-day/63-race streak continuously leading the Drivers’ Championship (since Spain 2022).
• Norris has won consecutive races for the first time in his career, after his previous victory in the 2024 season finale.
• Verstappen has finished second to Norris in four of Norris’ five wins.
A great result to start the year for Alex Albon and Williams
• P3 for Mercedes’ George Russell was his best-ever result in a season-opening race.
• Fourth place for Alex Albon was – discounting the one-lap 2021 Belgian Grand Prix – Williams’ best result since the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where Lance Stroll took P3.
• Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli, with P5, becomes the 69th driver to score on his F1 debut.
• At 18 years and 203 days, Antonelli is the second-youngest points scorer in F1 history behind Max Verstappen.
• Lance Stroll took P6 for Aston Martin. Incidentally he has scored his best result of the year in Melbourne in each of the last two years.
• With Nico Hulkenberg in P7, Sauber scored for the second time in three races, after going pointless in the first 22 races of 2024.
It was an excellent debut from Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli
Don’t miss your chance to experience the thrills of Shanghai and the first F1 Sprint of the season…
