Inaugural round of the 2026 season integrating the new technical regulations. This first race was marked by Mercedes’ dominance thanks to their double podium.

Starting from pole position, George Russell (Mercedes) won the race in 1h23’06’’801, securing the 6th victory of his career. Despite strong opposition from Ferrari at the beginning of the race, the Briton perfectly managed the restarts under Virtual Safety Car and a bold one-stop strategy, which proved successful until the checkered flag.

At only 19 years old, Andrea Kimi Antonelli confirmed the hopes placed in him by finishing 2nd, less than three seconds behind his teammate. For Mercedes, this double podium in the first race sends a very strong message to the competition.

Charles Leclerc completed the podium in 3rd place, just ahead of Lewis Hamilton, now with Ferrari, who executed a strong recovery (4th). The Scuderia showed good pure pace but lost ground to Mercedes during the VSC phases, where strategic choices were less effective.

Lando Norris (McLaren), 2025 champion, finished 5th after a solid race but could not threaten the top 4.

Max Verstappen (Red Bull) delivered one of the performances of the day: starting 20th, he climbed up to 6th place, despite Red Bull being off the pace at this first event.

Local hero Oscar Piastri did not start following an accident during the formation lap, a huge disappointment for the Australian fans.

Several notable retirements: Alonso, Bottas, and Hadjar, the latter having triggered a key VSC in the race scenario.