F1 Results Today: Max Verstappen beaten as F1 champion crashes out of thrilling Australian Grand Prix

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Red Bull, McLaren, Australia, 2025 — Photo: © IMAGO

Australian Grand Prix

F1 Results Today: Max Verstappen beaten as F1 champion crashes out of thrilling Australian Grand Prix

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Chris Deeley

Sunday 16 March 2025 07:04 Updated: 09:54

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A late rainstorm created a dramatic end to the Australian Grand Prix, with Oscar Piastri going from second to scrabbling for a couple of points thanks to a spin which saw him beached in the grass for around a minute.

Team-mate Lando Norris went off at the same corner just ahead of him, but managed to get back on track immediately, pitting for intermediate tyres and driving on to race victory while his sister McLaren languished at the back of the field.

F1 HEADLINES: Lewis Hamilton summoned by FIA as star receives Australian GP demotion

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Max Verstappen took an unexpected second place, with the Mercedes of George Russell rounding out the podium after a singularly uneventful race.

The race began in chaotic fashion, starting 15 minutes late thanks to Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar spinning into the wall on the formation lap. The first lap of racing saw two further cars crash out, with Jack Doohan the first to put his car in the wall before Carlos Sainz spun out under safety car conditions.

Fernando Alonso crashed out in the middle of the race, while Liam Lawson and Gabriel Bortoleto were both victims of the late rainstorm – bringing out a safety car, which led to a six-lap shootout for the win.

The next three finishers would have been long odds to finish fourth, fifth and sixth, with Alex Albon, rookie Kimi Antonelli (after a late penalty) and Lance Stroll leading home Nico Hulkenberg and the Ferraris – both compromised by a strategy call to stay out on dry tyres during the storm.

F1 Results: Australian Grand Prix 2025

1. Lando Norris [McLaren]
2. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] - +0.895sec
3. George Russell [Mercedes] - +8.481sec
4. Kimi Antonelli [Mercedes] - +10.135sec
5. Alex Albon [Williams] - +12.773sec
6. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] - +17.413sec
7. Nico Hulkenberg [Kick Sauber] - +18.423sec
8. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] - +19.826sec
9. Oscar Piastri [McLaren] - +20.448sec
10. Lewis Hamilton [Ferrari] - +22.473sec
11. Pierre Gasly [Alpine] - +26.502sec
12. Yuki Tsunoda [Racing Bulls] - +29.884sec
13. Esteban Ocon [Haas] - +33.161sec
14. Oliver Bearman [Haas] - +40.351sec
15. Liam Lawson [Red Bull] - DNF
16. Gabriel Bortoleto [Kick Sauber] - DNF
17. Fernando Alonso [Aston Martin] - DNF
18. Carlos Sainz [Williams] - DNF
19. Jack Doohan [Alpine] - DNF
20. Isack Hadjar [Racing Bulls] - DNS

Who is the current F1 world champion?

Max Verstappen is the reigning F1 champion, won his fourth drivers' championship last year.

2025 rule change removes fastest lap point

Fastest lap points have been banished for 2025. Since 2019, drivers have picked up an extra point if they finish in the top 10 and achieve the fastest lap.

However, it did lead to some drivers abandoning their races to pit and fit a set of new tyres at the end in order to claim the fastest lap point, or to stop a rival from getting the extra point.

The most famous example of this in 2024 came during Daniel Ricciardo's final F1 race, when the Australian finished last but claimed the fastest lap on the final lap of the Singapore GP, taking the extra point away from Lando Norris and helping Max Verstappen's title bid.

Max Verstappen Lewis Hamilton McLaren FIA Lando Norris George Russell