George Russell and Mercedes have laid down the early marker as the British driver stormed to pole for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Saturday, March 7. Russell’s teammate Kimi Antonelli will start in the second spot to complete a lockdown at the top for the Silver Arrows, who will be looking to revive their championship credentials as F1 enters a new era in 2026.
Max Verstappen had a day to forget in qualifying as he crashed out just minutes after Q1 got underway and in his very first lap of qualifying. The Dutch driver lost control of the rear of his car and crashed into the wall, forcing a red flag.
Once the session restarted, there was some drama waiting to unfold as Mercedes let Antonelli on to the track with a cooler still attached to the car. It fell off on the track and was later hit by Lando Norris’ car. This has Mercedes under investigation but it didn’t stop their dominance on the track. Russell claimed the top spot in all three sessions of qualifying.
Worringly, for the rest of the pack, Russell and Mercedes were completely dominant in terms of pure speed and using the new regulations. No driver could come close to Russell’s benchmark lap. Antonelli moved up to second place but was still three-tenths slower than the Mercedes driver, while Isack Hadjar slotted into third, nearly eight-tenths off the pace.
Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, Liam Lawson, and rookie Arvid Lindblad rounded out the top nine. Gabriel Bortoleto completed the top 10 despite not registering a lap time in Q3. Despite securing pole on the day, Russell admitted that the race won’t be an easy one.
“It was a great day. We knew there was a lot of potential in the car, but until we get to this first Saturday of the season, you never know, but it really came alive this afternoon.”
“As the track temperature cooled, we tend to favour those conditions. Also, really happy to have Kimi here because it has been such a hard job from the team to deliver this car. They did an amazing job in the garage as well.
“It’s not easy to drive. I’m excited for the race tomorrow and it could bring some quite exciting racing. Hopefully we can deliver a good race.”
AUSTRALIAN GP: QUALIFYING RESULTS
- George Russell (Mercedes) – 1:18.518
- Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – +0.293
- Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) – +0.785
- Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – +0.809
- Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – +0.862
- Lando Norris (McLaren) – +0.957
- Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – +0.960
- Liam Lawson (RB) – +1.476
- Arvid Lindblad (RB) – +2.729
- Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) – No time in Q3
- Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) – 1:20.303
- Oliver Bearman (Haas) – 1:20.311
- Esteban Ocon (Haas) – 1:20.491
- Pierre Gasly (Alpine) – 1:20.501
- Alexander Albon (Williams) – 1:20.941
- Franco Colapinto (Alpine) – 1:21.270
- Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) – No time
- Sergio Perez (Cadillac) – No time
- Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) – No time
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – No time
- Carlos Sainz (Williams) – No time
- Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) – No time
