Lando Norris has taken the early lead in the 2025 Formula 1 Championship with victory in Sunday's Australian Grand Prix.
Having missed out on last year's title despite a fine second half of the campaign, the McLaren driver was looking to make a statement in the wet conditions in Melbourne.
The British driver did just that, leading for much of an incident-packed race and being able to fend off the challenge of Max Verstappen during the closing stages.
Although the final gap between the pair was less than a second, Norris's win felt far more than a statement than it looks at first glance, Verstappen left with much to ponder ahead of next week's race in China.
An array of safety cars meant that five pit stops were made by each of the 14 finishers, Lewis Hamilton initially taking the lead on his debut for Ferrari when his team gambled with the conditions.
However, it failed to pay off, the seven-time world champion having to settle for 10th place as fellow Briton George Russell came home third in his Mercedes.
Andrea Antonelli, one of several rookies, was arguably the story of the day, earning fourth spot in the other Mercedes to lay down a marker that his team could challenge for the Constructors.
Race 1 ✅
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 16, 2025
Here's the finishing order from a wild season opener, kicking off with the top ten 👇#F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/vXKDv29as6
Much to ponder for Hamilton
Hamilton has moved to Ferrari for a fresh challenge at the back end of his career, yet the veteran revealed after the race that he had little confidence in his car in its current state.
As well as saying that 'the car was nearly in the wall most of the time', Hamilton added: "I'm grateful I got through it, came out of it with a little bit of something, at least one point.
"Obviously I didn't go off or spin. Lacking pace, for sure, but I do believe the car has more performance than we were able to extract this weekend."
Teammate Charles Leclerc could only finish in eighth, highlighting that it was a performance issue for Ferrari over Hamilton still adjusting to life at his new team.
Darren Plant
