Lando Norris held his nerve to kickstart his 2025 season with a victory at the Australian Grand Prix. The Brit led home Max Verstappen and George Russell as home hero Oscar Piastri’s heartbreaking spin took him out of contention.
There was immediate chaos from the start as rookie Isack Hadjar crashed on the formation lap. The Frenchman’s mistake was followed by a crash for Jack Doohan, who dropped it in treacherous conditions on the opening lap. Under the ensuing safety car, Carlos Sainz lost control in the final corner and found the barriers.
When the race restarted, Verstappen hounded Norris for the lead, but the Dutchman’s tyres quickly perished, and he ran wide in the final sector on lap 17, handing second place to Piastri.
The Australian was then unleashed to hunt down his McLaren team-mate and came within DRS range, but a mistake on the approach to Turn Six dropped him nearly three seconds back before the safety car returned for a Fernando Alonso shunt at the same corner.
Rain arrived on lap 44 and caused chaos. First, Piastri lost control at the penultimate corner, dropping a lap down in the process before Gabriel Bortoleto and Liam Lawson both lost control in the perilous conditions. Those crashes brought out another safety car and shuffled the pack.
When the safety car eventually came in, Norris held his nerve despite immense pressure from Verstappen behind. The Brit kicked off his title bid with maximum points at a soaked Albert Park Circuit.
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