A chaotic start to the F1 2025 season saw Lando Norris emerge victorious while team-mate Oscar Piastri was left to rue a costly mistake.
A slippery surface and changeable conditions added up to a tricky start for all 20 drivers. Here’s who mastered the storm and who slipped off the tracks.
Driver ratings for the 2025 Australian Grand Prix
Lando Norris – 10
Poor starts, scared of Max Verstappen – whatever criticism was previously pointed at Lando Norris, he duly delivered in Melbourne.
Pipping Oscar Piastri to pole, Norris showed the benefit of that from the very off when he moved across to block his team-mate off the line and aside from chaotic calls from McLaren, he never lost the lead.
It was Norris’ best wet-weather performance and at a time when even his team-mate succumbed to the challenge, Norris was the last man left standing to go on and claim the fifth win of his career.
Max Verstappen – 9.5
With the RB21 a step behind McLaren, a P2 is probably more than Max Verstappen and Red Bull would have hoped for.
He made a good start, getting past Piastri in the opening lap but a small mistake allowed the Australian back in.
Ultimately, Verstappen did what he could but it was McLaren and Norris’ day in Melbourne.
George Russell – 8.5
One of those results were you ask yourself “how did Russell end up on the podium?”
The simple answer to that is he kept it on the track when those around him did not.
Qualified in P4, it was a hard task to keep up with the McLarens and Verstappen but if an opportunity does present itself, you have to make sure you are there to seize it and that is exactly what Russell did.
Kimi Antonelli – 9.5
At a time when his fellow rookies were crashing into walls, Kimi Antonelli produced a performance that hinted why Mercedes were ready to promote him into Hamilton’s old seat.
Starting 16th, Antonelli battled his way up the order meaning that when the late-race chaos arrived, he was in position to capitalise on it.
Mercedes pitting at the right moment allowed him to cross the line fourth, marking a fine start to life in F1.
Alex Albon – 8.5
When Carlos Sainz arrived through the Williams door, many predicted Albon may feel the heat against his new team-mate but the Thai driver has firmly established his credentials after the first race.
The Williams car is clearly a step up from last year and when you give good drivers a good car, the result follows.
A deserved P5 for Albon, the best opening race of his career.
Lance Stroll – 7
With Alonso going out, Aston needed Lance Stroll to come good for them and he duly did.
Yes he had a bit of fortune with Piastri spinning and the Ferraris picking the wrong strategy but he still kept it on track – something he has not always done in the past.
Nico Hulkenberg – 8
It took Sauber 23 races to score a point last season and Nico Hulkenberg has already managed that and then some in his first grand prix with his new team.
Hulkenberg’s strength at Haas was shown to be maximising whatever speed he has in the car and while it did not always mean daring overtakes in Melbourne, it presented itself by him keeping some quick cars behind.
Late movement in the order saw him rise up to seventh and it was a job well done for the German.
Charles Leclerc – 7.5
It was all going well, until it wasn’t. Charles Leclerc looked like he was making up for lost ground in quali but when Ferrari hesitated in bringing both drivers in for inters, it cost them.
They plunged down the order but Leclerc at least was able to restore some ground, finishing eighth and starting the season with four points.
Oscar Piastri – 7
As he described – 56 great laps and one bad one.
With McLaren being indecisive over whether to bring their drivers in or not, the result was both of them slipping off the track and while Norris managed to keep it on the tarmac after, Piastri found himself in the grass.
In fairness to him, he kept it running and fought back well to finish P9 but it is a long way off the podium he look guaranteed to have.
Lewis Hamilton – 6.5
A worryingly familiar feel to Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari debut and that is not because it ended up with him winning.
After losing an early place to Albon, Hamilton just could not find a way past the Williams car and as a result, the rest of the field disappeared down the track.
A difficult afternoon almost turned into a dream for the driver when he found himself P1 but Ferrari’s strategy (get used to it Lewis) was a gamble too far and both drivers were sent tumbling down the order.
To rub salt in the wounds, Hamilton lost P9 on the final lap to Piastri.
Pierre Gasly – 6.5
One mistake cost Pierre Gasly dear as a slight overstep on a corner saw him lose three places at once.
That was Gasly’s race in a nutshell, for up until then, he had been doing well to keep the Alpine in the points.
Finishing just outside in 11th, there will be frustrations now but the performance of that car is much better now than it was this time last year.
Yuki Tsunoda – 6.5
The second best quali of Yuki Tsunoda’s career went up in smoke as Racing Bulls, like Ferrari, did not pit their driver when they should have.
At one point, Tsunoda was second in the order behind only Verstappen but while the rest of the field swapped to inters, Racing Bulls waited a few laps too long and Tsunoda reemerged in 11th.
Piastri would go on to overtake the Japanese driver meaning it was P12 to start the year for Tsunoda.
Estaban Ocon – 6
A bit of nothing weekend from Esteban Ocon who was consistently near the bottom of the order.
He should get praise for at least keeping it on the track but he failed to finish ahead of anyone but his team-mate and the drivers who retired.
Oliver Bearman – 6.5
The good news for Oliver Bearman is that, unlike practice, he did not crash. The bad news is that he was plum last.
Scoring points on his full debut in a Haas was always going to be a tough ask so the rookie should instead be praised for staying in it during a very difficult race.
Did not finish
Liam Lawson – 5.5
A little too much acceleration at the wrong time was a formula that cooked a lot of drivers and Liam Lawson was one of them.
Starting from the pit lane, it was always going to be a recovery drive for the new Red Bull man and he was making good ground on that goal before the error.
Gabriel Bortoleto – 5.5
Caught out by the treacherous conditions, Bortoleto found a wet patch on the kerb and went spinning round out of the race.
The Brazilian F2 champion was unlikely to be in points contention but he would have at least wanted to have finished his first race in F1.
Fernando Alonso – 5
A little too much kerb in lap 32 had a costly impact on Fernando Alonso’s race as his rear spun out and sent him into the wall.
With a quick Antonelli behind him, Alonso may well have fallen out of the points anyway but a costly error from the most experienced driver ever was the most surprising crash of the day.
More analysis from the Australian Grand Prix
The inside story of Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari debut
Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari fairytale becomes a familiar story of failure
Carlos Sainz – 5.5
While the other early exits were down to driver error, there was a technical problem with Carlos Sainz’s Williams that he said gave it a sudden burst of power – the exact opposite of what you need when you are trying to guide it round an ice rink of a track.
The result was monumental. Into the wall Sainz went and with it, his Williams debut was over.
Jack Doohan – 5
Some good work in quali quickly came undone when Jack Doohan picked up the power a little quickly and the car bit back.
With his dad watching on, it was a head-in-hands moment for the driver most under pressure on the grid.
Isack Hadjar – 5
A rookie mistake but one that cost Isack Hadjar his first race in Formula 1.
Hadjar was the first but, as it would turn out not the only one, to get caught by the slippery surface in Albert Park but his day came to an end before lights out.
In quali though, he impressed to start 11th on the grid.
Read next: Australian GP conclusions: Norris 2.0, the Max factor and why Hamilton needs time
