Winners & Losers of F1’s Season Debut in Melbourne

Written by Lily Dixon

March 24, 2025

The 2025 Formula 1 season—marking the sport’s 75th anniversary—got off to a roaring start in Melbourne as drivers battled extreme precipitation and teams were forced to make bold strategic decisions.

Lando Norris took the first checkered flag of the season, but he wasn’t the only driver with a standout performance. So, who were the winners and losers of the Australian Grand Prix?

Winners

Lando Norris

Aside from adding more hardware to the cabinet at MTC, Norris showcased his skills in wet conditions, holding off his teammate, Oscar Piastri, through multiple rolling restarts.

Being one of just 14 drivers to actually take the checkered flag was an achievement in itself, but his performance on the way to securing the first win of the 2025 season was nothing short of brilliant. He’ll be happy to start his World Drivers' Championship (WDC) campaign strong after a swift defeat to Max Verstappen in the closing stages of the 2024 season.

Will 2025 finally be Norris’s year?

Mercedes

An incredible debut from rookie driver Kimi Antonelli and a podium finish from George Russell earned Mercedes 27 points, tying them with defending champions McLaren for first in the World Constructors' Championship (WCC).

After qualifying P16 due to a floorboard issue, Antonelli faced an uphill battle heading into Sunday but executed a stunning drive to finish just off the podium. His only mistake—a mid-race spin that allowed Nico Hülkenberg to pass—didn’t overshadow an otherwise brilliant debut. His overtaking displays, including passing Hülkenberg twice and making a daring move on Alex Albon in the final laps, will only strengthen his future at Mercedes. Notably, he succeeded where his Mercedes predecessor, Lewis Hamilton, struggled throughout the race.

In addition to two strong drives, the team’s pit wall made all the right strategy calls, timing pit stops perfectly and giving both Antonelli and Russell the opportunity to fight for high points-paying positions.

Lance Stroll

Lance Stroll helped Aston Martin score their first points of the 2025 season, edging out his teammate Fernando Alonso and bringing home the team’s only points after Alonso crashed late in the race. Stroll navigated the treacherous conditions expertly, and Aston Martin’s smart decision to pit for intermediates in the final laps helped him secure P6.

Not only did he match his result in Australia from the previous season, but he also equaled his best finish from 2024.

Alex Albon

A strong showing from Williams saw veteran driver Alex Albon finish P5, bringing home the team’s only points after Carlos Sainz crashed under the first safety car and was forced to retire early.

Albon defended expertly against Hamilton for much of the race, showcasing both the Williams car’s pace and his own racecraft. After impressing with a P6 qualifying result, he hoped to stay in the points and managed to do one better—partially thanks to a crucial pit wall decision influenced by his teammate’s advice. The choice to pit for fresh tires proved essential when a patch of rain covered Sector 3 in the final laps.

Stake Kick Sauber

A brilliant weekend for the Swiss outfit saw former Haas driver Nico Hülkenberg finish P7, scoring two more points than the team managed in their entire 2024 campaign. While teammate Gabriel Bortoleto retired mid-race after hitting the wall, Sauber will be pleased with their strong start—a stark contrast to last year. Impressively, they now sit ahead of their engine suppliers, Ferrari, in the WCC.

Max Verstappen

A result that should bring optimism to the Dutch driver, Max Verstappen crossed the line in P2, just over a second behind Norris. Though he entered the weekend with low expectations, he finished within touching distance of his title rival from last season.

Verstappen qualified P3 and seized the opportunity at lights out to pass Piastri into Turn 1. Despite struggling with oversteer throughout the race and navigating extreme conditions, he handled the challenges expertly—nearly extending his 1,000+ day streak of leading the WDC standings.

Losers

Oscar Piastri

It was a textbook weekend for the Aussie driver—until the final laps. In front of his home crowd, Piastri closely matched Norris’s pace in free practice and qualified just milliseconds behind him to secure P2.

At the race start, Piastri lost position to Verstappen into Turn 1 but quickly regained it, maintaining strong pace throughout most of the race. Unfortunately, a late rain shower and a small mistake while pushing for the win sent him spinning into the gravel. Struggling to restart his car, he plummeted to the back of the grid.

Thanks to a safety car restart, he was able to catch up and make a few last-minute overtakes to salvage P9 and score points at his home race. Not the result he wanted, but still valuable for McLaren’s WCC bid—and his own championship hopes.

HAAS

A disastrous weekend for the American team saw both cars finish at the very bottom of the classified results. While they managed to avoid major damage in the treacherous conditions, they’ll be grateful their mechanics were spared the extra work—especially after Oliver Bearman’s crash in FP1 at the high-speed Turns 9/10 and a gearbox failure in Q1 that prevented him from setting a flying lap.

Haas will need to unlock more pace heading into China if they want to fight for midfield points.

Liam Lawson

After the preseason controversy surrounding Liam Lawson being chosen over the more experienced Yuki Tsunoda for Red Bull’s vacant seat, the last thing he wanted was to crash out or drop out of the points on debut—which is exactly what happened with 10 laps to go.

To secure his seat, Lawson will need to close the gap to Verstappen’s pace and pull away from the VCARB drivers. With some laps three seconds slower than Verstappen’s, he has a steep challenge ahead. Given Red Bull’s reputation for mid-season driver changes, he’ll need to turn things around quickly.

Racing Bulls (VCARB)

A nightmare debut for VCARB saw rookie Isack Hadjar crash on the formation lap and Yuki Tsunoda finish P12, leaving the team at the bottom of the WCC standings without a single point.

Hadjar took the crash hard, walking back to the paddock visibly distraught. Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko called the incident “embarrassing,” sparking controversy over driver mental health.

Pierre Gasly

After running in the points for most of the race, Gasly spun in the closing laps, allowing both Ferraris to overtake him and relegating him to P11. A strong drive ultimately yielded no reward for the Frenchman.

Alpine now starts the season tied with VCARB at the bottom of the standings.

Scuderia Ferrari

A disastrous late-race strategy call saw Ferrari gamble on slick tires in the rain, only to abort the plan too late—dropping them down the order. They finished P8 and P10, behind Stake Kick Sauber, the same team that ended 2024 in P10.

It was a rough debut in red for Lewis Hamilton and yet another stroke of misfortune for Charles Leclerc in a Ferrari.