kimi was on the front row as Formula 1’s new era began at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Australia, with Mercedes converting its qualifying lockout into a 1-2 finish on Sunday. George Russell won from pole for Mercedes, with Kimi Antonelli finishing second after a race shaped by sweeping regulations that have divided driver opinion. The outcome sets an early benchmark as the field now turns toward Round 2 in China in one week.
Mercedes delivers 1-2 as Russell holds on and Antonelli rebounds
Mercedes arrived at Albert Park with pace that was difficult to gauge through practice, where different names topped the timesheets in each session, but the team asserted itself in Saturday qualifying. Russell and Antonelli locked out the front row by a sizeable margin, placing Mercedes in prime position for Sunday.
The race did not unfold as a straightforward run to the flag. Russell described a tense opening phase after the start, saying in a postrace interview: “Feeling incredible. It was a hell of a fight at the beginning. We knew it was going to be challenging. I got on the grid, I saw my battery level, I had nothing in the tank, made a bad start, and then obviously had some really tight battles with Charles. So I was really glad to cross the finish line. ”
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc surged into the lead at the first corner, while Antonelli slipped back to seventh. A battle developed between Russell and Leclerc as the race moved into its early rhythm, with strategy soon becoming decisive around Virtual Safety Car phases.
Polarizing regulation shift reshapes strategy — and kimi sits at the heart of it
The 2026 season opened with brand-new cars built under sweeping regulations that reset the competitive order and altered the balance toward battery power. Drivers can deploy battery power with a button on the steering wheel or replenish it by “harvesting” and slowing down, increasing the strategic element and shifting emphasis away from raw one-lap pace toward longer-term planning.
Russell pointed to how quickly momentum can swing under the new tools: “There’s definitely more opportunity and you do have to be more strategic. I think on a circuit like this where you have four straights and you’ve got to split. If you use your overtake mode, your boost button, you will pass the driver in one straight and he will then pass back. ”
The rule change drew sharp reactions. Max Verstappen, asked by Sky Sports if he enjoyed the race, said: “No, not really. Of course the overtakes were fun, but I mean I’m also racing cars that are 2 seconds slower. ” Verstappen also criticized the new regulations after qualifying, saying: “I’m not enjoying it at all. Emotionally and feeling-wise, I’m completely drained. This has very little to do with racing. ”
Lando Norris, the reigning world champion, finished fifth and called the racing “artificial” with its reliance on battery deployment. “We’re nowhere near where we need to be, ” Norris said of the McLaren car. After qualifying, Norris added: “We’ve gone from the best cars to the worst, ” and said the regulation shift “already sucks. ”
During one exchange amid the on-track fight, Leclerc captured the mood with a radio quip: “This is like the mushroom in Mario Kart. ”
Ferrari’s start, VSC choices, and the fight to the flag
Ferrari showed strong signs across the Melbourne weekend, having also caught attention in Bahrain pre-season testing with solid lap counts and the fastest time of the second test from Leclerc. Lewis Hamilton said in Bahrain he was feeling “in the best place I’ve been in for a long time. ”
But Ferrari’s qualifying left the team some eight-tenths off Russell’s pole time, putting Leclerc fourth and Hamilton seventh on the grid. Their race starts flipped the script, with Leclerc taking the lead and Hamilton pressuring the front battle.
Strategy under the Virtual Safety Car windows proved costly for Ferrari. While Mercedes brought both cars in during the first VSC, Ferrari kept both cars on track during the two VSC stints and later lost time when they eventually pitted. Even so, Leclerc secured the final spot on the podium behind Russell and Antonelli, with Hamilton finishing fourth after nearly catching his teammate near the chequered flag.
Antonelli called the result “the best start we could have wished for. ”
What’s next: China in one week as the new era tightens
With Mercedes showing early momentum and Ferrari demonstrating race-winning threat, the focus immediately shifts to how teams adapt to the strategic demands of the new rules. The next test comes quickly at Round 2 in China in one week, where the battery-management racing style will again be under scrutiny.
For Mercedes, the benchmark is clear: maintain the advantage without being drawn into strategic traps. For the rest of the field, the mission is even sharper — close the gap fast in a regulation reset where early execution can set the tone. And with kimi already in the thick of the defining battles, the new season’s storylines are moving at full speed.
