FORMULA1 WKLY — ISSUE #1
Australian Grand Prix · Albert Park · Round 1, 2026
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PODIUM
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P1 — George Russell · Mercedes
P2 — Kimi Antonelli · Mercedes
P3 — Charles Leclerc · Ferrari
THE WEEKEND
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FP1 — Ferrari set the early tone
The very first practice session of 2026 was immediately eventful. Alonso's Aston Martin never left the garage due to a suspected power unit issue — a worrying sign for a team already known to be struggling with Honda's new engine. Piastri reported "no power" early on. Lindblad stopped at the pit exit in his Racing Bulls debut. Norris had his session cut short for precautionary gearbox checks. And Albon stopped on track late, bringing out a VSC.
Despite the chaos, Charles Leclerc topped the session with a 1:20.267, beating Hamilton by 0.469s and Verstappen by 0.522s. Rookie Lindblad impressed in fifth once he returned to track. Mercedes were notably quiet in FP1 — Russell ended up seventh — which in hindsight may have been deliberate. They were saving something.
FP1 Top 5: Leclerc · Hamilton · Verstappen · Hadjar · Lindblad
FP2 — Piastri leads, Mercedes shows pace, Verstappen has a scare
The second session was faster and messier. Russell clipped Lindblad's car in the pit lane at the start of the session. Colapinto slowed suddenly on track, forcing Hamilton into evasive action. Verstappen stalled his RB22 in the pits. And then Verstappen had a massive snap of oversteer at Turn 10 late in the session, damaging his floor as he went through the gravel. He saved it — just.
On the timesheets, Piastri topped FP2 with a 1:19.729 ahead of Antonelli (+0.214s), Russell (+0.320s) and Hamilton (+0.321s). For the first time all weekend, Mercedes looked genuinely fast. Leclerc was fifth. The narrative going into Saturday was that McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari were within striking distance. That did not last long.
FP2 Top 5: Piastri · Antonelli · Russell · Hamilton · Leclerc
FP3 — Russell fastest, Antonelli crashes
Saturday practice was also disrupted. Sainz stopped near the pit entry early on, triggering a red flag. Stroll did not run at all due to a suspected ICE issue — Aston Martin's problems were now serious. The session resumed with 38 minutes left.
With four minutes to go, Antonelli crashed heavily at Turn 2 after taking too much kerb and losing the rear of his W17. The car was badly damaged. There were genuine questions about whether Mercedes could repair it in time for qualifying. They did — just.
Russell topped FP3 with a 1:19.053, a full 0.774s faster than second-placed Leclerc. Hamilton was third. The gap between Russell and the rest was already becoming a talking point.
FP3 Top 5: Russell · Leclerc · Hamilton · Piastri · Hadjar
Qualifying — Russell dominates, Verstappen crashes out in Q1
The biggest shock of qualifying came in Q1. Verstappen hit the brakes at Turn 1, locked the rear axle and went into the barriers. His Red Bull was too damaged to continue. He would start from the back of the grid — P20. It was a terrible way to begin his 2026 season.
That crash actually helped Mercedes. The red flag that followed gave the team extra time to finish repairing Antonelli's car from FP3. He made it out — and qualified second.
Russell was in a league of his own. He put in a final lap of 1:18.518 — nearly 0.3s faster than Antonelli in second. The gap to the next non-Mercedes car was over 0.8 seconds. Hadjar qualified a brilliant third on his Red Bull debut. Leclerc was fourth. Piastri fifth. Norris, struggling all weekend, could only manage sixth.
In Q3, Bortoleto's Audi hit a technical issue and never set a lap. Antonelli's cooling fans fell off his car in the pitlane and Norris ran over them, causing another red flag. The session was chaos — but Russell cut through all of it and produced one of the most dominant poles of the new era.
Qualifying Top 5: Russell (1:18.518) · Antonelli · Hadjar · Leclerc · Piastri
RACE RECAP
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Mercedes are back. And they made sure everyone knew it from lap 1.
Russell started from pole but Leclerc's Ferrari had a rocket start from P4, snatching the lead heading into Turn 1. What followed was one of the most chaotic opening stints in recent memory. Russell and Leclerc traded the lead 7 times in the first 9 laps as both drivers struggled to manage the new 2026 energy deployment systems. Neither driver knew exactly when their battery would kick in or cut out — making defending and attacking unpredictable for everyone on track.
The race turned on lap 11 when Hadjar pulled off with a technical issue, triggering a Virtual Safety Car. Mercedes called both Russell and Antonelli in immediately, switching to hard tyres. Ferrari kept Leclerc and Hamilton out. That was the mistake that cost Ferrari the win. When a second VSC came out shortly after due to Bottas retiring his Cadillac, Ferrari tried to pit but the pitlane entry was closed. They were stuck out on older tyres with no way to respond.
Russell rejoined behind Leclerc but was lapping nearly 0.75 seconds per lap faster. By lap 27 he had wiped out a 16-second deficit and taken the lead for good. Antonelli followed him home in P2 for a dominant Mercedes 1-2. Leclerc held on for P3 with Hamilton just 0.6 seconds behind in P4.
Further back, Norris finished P5 for McLaren — over 50 seconds behind Russell — which tells you everything about the gap between Mercedes and the rest right now. Verstappen recovered from dead last after his qualifying crash to finish sixth and won Driver of the Day.
STRATEGY BREAKDOWN
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This race came down to one decision: pit or stay out under the VSC.
Mercedes pitted both cars on lap 12 during the first VSC. Ferrari decided to stay out, believing they could manage their tyres to the end. It backfired badly. A second VSC followed immediately and by the time Ferrari wanted to react, the pitlane entry was closed. They had no choice but to stay out even longer on worn tyres.
When Leclerc finally pitted on lap 25 he rejoined 16 seconds behind Russell. Game over. Hamilton even called it out on team radio during the race, saying at least one of them should have come in. Ferrari defended the call afterwards but the result speaks for itself.
CRASHES AND INCIDENTS
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Piastri — Before the race even started
The biggest story of the weekend happened before a single racing lap was completed. Oscar Piastri, at his home Grand Prix in Melbourne, crashed his McLaren on the reconnaissance lap to the grid. At Turn 4, he clipped a kerb and the car suddenly produced far more power than expected the moment he shifted gear — sending the car into wheelspin and into the concrete wall. The damage was too severe to repair. Piastri had to walk back to the paddock and watch from the garage. He said it hurt a lot, especially at his home race.
Verstappen — Qualifying crash
Verstappen spun into the barriers in Q1, ending his qualifying session immediately and leaving him to start from P20. He drove a strong recovery race to finish sixth and took Driver of the Day, but it was an unnecessary situation that made his weekend much harder than it needed to be.
Hulkenberg — Did not start
Nico Hulkenberg's Audi suffered a technical issue on his way to the grid and did not start the race. A tough debut for the new works team, who only had Gabriel Bortoleto representing them — and he delivered with a points finish in ninth.
DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP
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P1 · George Russell · Mercedes · 25 pts
P2 · Kimi Antonelli · Mercedes · 18 pts
P3 · Charles Leclerc · Ferrari · 15 pts
P4 · Lewis Hamilton · Ferrari · 12 pts
P5 · Lando Norris · McLaren · 10 pts
CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP
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P1 · Mercedes · 43 pts
P2 · Ferrari · 27 pts
P3 · McLaren · 10 pts
P4 · Red Bull · 8 pts
P5 · Haas · 6 pts
UP NEXT — CHINESE GRAND PRIX
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March 21-23 · Shanghai
Formula 1 heads to Shanghai for the first Sprint weekend of 2026. Can Ferrari fix their strategy? Will McLaren close the gap without Piastri's lost points? And does Verstappen have the pace or just the recovery drives?
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