F1 LIVE: Lewis Hamilton digs out Mercedes engineers as FIA dish out huge punishment
F1 LIVE: Lewis Hamilton digs out Mercedes engineers as FIA dish out huge punishment
Express Sport is on hand to bring you the latest F1 news from the Australian Grand Prix.
Express Sport is on hand to bring you the latest updates from the world of F1 (Image: GETTY)
Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were all forced to retire from the Australian Grand Prix during an eventful race on the streets of Melbourne. Carlos Sainz took the chequered flag in Melbourne to complete a Ferrari one-two, with Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris joining the Spaniard on the podium.
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Verstappen started on pole but was forced to call it a day after just five laps with smoke billowing from the back of his Red Bull car. He was then involved in a frosty exchange with an engineer as he tried to come to terms with the unfortunate manner of his retirement.
Hamilton went on to suffer a mechanical problem of his own, with the Brit grinding to a halt at the edge of the circuit due to an engine failure. Just moments before the end of the race, Russell crashed out after losing the rear end while chasing Fernando Alonso in the battle for sixth place.
Fernando Alonso handed 20-second penalty08:56
Full results05:41
Carlos Sainz wins as George Russell crashes on final lap05:23
Lewis Hamilton retires with power unit failure04:38
Carlos Sainz leads with Max Verstappen out04:11
Sergio Perez handed three-place grid penalty08:16
Full qualifying results06:09
Max Verstappen beats Carlos Sainz to pole06:02
Lewis Hamilton out in Q205:44
George Russell fumes at Lewis Hamilton05:21
6 hours ago23:29 Fraser Watson
Bottas bemoans Sauber pit stop problems
Valteri Bottas has explained why he and Sauber teammate Zhou Guanyu were again hit by pit stop problems in Australia.
In Albert Park, both were delayed, with the Finn eventually finishing 14th, a place ahead of Zhou.
“We have actually an issue on both cards with cross threading,” he explained. With the wheel nuts, we tried to go for a route to make them super lightweight, so the material we are using is the issue.
“In pit stop practice over the winter, there was no issues, but we’re seeing that in races when the temperature gets higher because of the brakes, then the wheel nut [has problems].”
8 hours ago22:12 Fraser Watson
Perez makes shock Verstappen claim
Sergio Perez does not think teammate Max Verstappen would have won the Australian Grand Prix even without the engine problems that forced him to retire.
Asked by Sky F1 whether Ferrari would still have won regardless, Perez replied: “Absolutely, yes.
“We didn’t have the pace unfortunately,” Perez admitted.
“Early on we could see that Ferrari and McLaren were a step ahead of us. I think we just couldn’t get the balance in a window. There is some work to do for the coming races.”
8 hours ago21:28 Fraser Watson
Marko taunts Ferrari despite Sainz win
Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko has told Ferrari the Australian Grand Prix would have been “completely different” had Max Verstappen not had to retire early on.
“I spoke to Max and he said that despite the problems, he kept up with Sainz’s pace relatively easily,” Marko told Sky Germany. “With Max in the race, the outcome would have been completely different.”
9 hours ago20:35 Fraser Watson
Ricciardo refusing to get ‘rattled’
It was a poor weekend for Daniel Ricciardo, starting 18th from the grid and then eventually finishing 12th and failing to score a first point of the season.
“Obviously the weekend I would have loved to have gone better, but I think we’ve just got to keep our kind of eyes on the prize,” he said afterwards.
“It hasn’t been the best three races to start the season for sure. And especially kind of the preparation I had coming into the season, it’s definitely not where I expected to be. But it’s certainly not something that we’re going to get like rattled by or anything. We’ve just got to stay on course and I’m sure we’ll find it.”

Daniel Ricciardo had a touch weekend in Melbourne. (Image: Getty)
10 hours ago20:03 Mikael McKenzie
Hamilton joins dating app
Lewis Hamilton has reportedly joined exclusive celebrity dating app Raya after splitting from Brazilian model Juliana Nalu.
The seven-time Formula One world champion is supposedly looking for love on the social network that only allows a very select group of people.
Hamilton was previously in a relationship with Nalu but the pair are reported to have gone their separate ways.
The 39-year-old has also shared high-profile relationships with singer Nicole Scherzinger.
According to the Sun, Hamilton has now signed up to Raya in the hope of finding his next relationship.
10 hours ago19:26 Mikael McKenzie
Norris swears at fan
Lando Norris has been captured sticking his middle finger up to a fan who taunted him at the Australian GP.
The McLaren star was walking through the paddock when a supporter shouted “when are you going to win a race?”
The 24-year-old responded by stretching out his arm and swearing.
Lando Norris has been captured sticking his middle finger up to a fan who taunted him at the
11 hours ago18:23 Mikael McKenzie
Norris told to have surgery
Carlos Sainz has joked that Lando Norris needs to have his appendix removed in order to win his first F1 race.
Sainz quickly recovered from his operated to win the Australian Grand Prix, after sitting out of the race in Saudi Arabia last time out.
“It is what I told Lando, I said maybe you should get your appendix removed this winter, you should do it because there may be a tenth in it. We were talking about it on the podium,” Sainz said.
13 hours ago17:10 Mikael McKenzie
Chandhok tips Sainz for Mercedes move
Karun Chandhok has tipped Mercedes to move for Carlos Sainz after the Ferrari star won in Melbourne.
“It was a superb performance and I think he had the measure of Charles,” Chandhok said. “Since the start of qualifying, he had the measure of Charles, he executed a perfect race.
“I think if you were Mercedes looking at it there, and you say, ‘You know what, we’ve lost an established A-list star, we’re coming into a final year with these regulations, got new regs coming in 2026. We need an experienced driver who’s shown they can cope with the pressure of winning a Grand Prix, there’s one there straight away’.
“So, I think he would be a great fit alongside George Russell at Mercedes but what do I know?”
14 hours ago16:04 Mikael McKenzie
Leclerc confident
Charles Leclerc is confident that Ferrari are moving in the right direction and slowly closing the gap to Red Bull.
He said: “It’s been a long time since we have had the genuine pace to have Red Bull… I wouldn’t say under control, because we don’t know what was the real pace of Max today, but I will say that from FP1, we knew that pole position and the race win was possible because we had very good tyre degradation, very good pace, and that is a very encouraging sign.
“However, if you look at the first three races, two out of the first three races they had the upper hand in the race. So we still have a lot of work to do. But that’s exactly what we need to do as a team.”
15 hours ago15:00 Mikael McKenzie
Russell’s full radio message after crash
George Russell’s radio message following his crash this morning has been revealed.
“Red flag, red flag, I’m in the middle of the track, red flag, red flag. Red, red, red, red, red,” Russell shouted on team radio
“I’m in the middle. Red. F***. Why so long?”
16 hours ago14:03 Mikael McKenzie
Wolff wants to punch himself
Toto Wolff claimed he wanted to give himself a knock after Mercedes scored no points in Melbourne.
He said: “On one side, I want to punch myself on the nose. On the other side, it’s a testimony that when you get things right, you can turn it around pretty quickly and continue to believe.
“At the moment, it’s a very tough time.”
17 hours ago13:02 Mikael McKenzie
Horner could sign Sainz
Christian Horner has refuse to rule out signing Carlos Sainz for Red Bull next season after the Ferrari star won the Australian GP.
“We want to field the best pairing we can with Red Bull Racing so, sometimes, you got to look outside the pool as well,” Horner said.
“The market is reasonably fluid in certain parts. I mean, based on a performance like that, you couldn’t rule any possibility out.
“So I think, we just want to take the time and, obviously, Checo [Perez] was compromised today and has had a great start to the season too so we’re not in any desperate rush.”
18 hours ago11:48 Archie Griggs
Toto Wolff responds to questions on Mercedes future
Toto Wolff says it is ‘fair’ to question his future as Mercedes team principal after yet another disappointing weekend for the Silver Arrows in Australia.
Asked if he is still the right man to lead the team forward, Wolff said: “I need to make sure that my contribution is positive.
“I would be the first one to say: ‘If somebody has a better idea, tell me’. I’m interested [in] turning this team around as quickly as possible and I’ll happily give my input on what that would be, or who that could be.
“I look at myself in the mirror every single day about everything I do. If I believe that I should ask the manager question or the trainer question, I think it’s a fair question.
“It’s not what I feel at the moment that I should do. But if you have any ideas about who could turn this around, I would happily listen to them.”
19 hours ago11:03 Archie Griggs
Fernando Alonso hits out after FIA penalty
Fernando Alonso has hit out at suggestions that he drove dangerously while defending against George Russell on the last lap of today’s race in Melbourne.
The Spaniard was later handed a 20-second penalty by the FIA, which saw him slip to eighth in the finishing order, as well as three penalty points.
“I wanted to maximise my exit speed from Turn Six to defend against him,” said Alonso when quizzed on what happened.
“That’s what any racing driver would do, and I didn’t feel it was dangerous. It’s disappointing to get a penalty from the stewards for what was hard but fair racing.
“Still, I’m glad that George is okay. It was not nice to see his car in the middle of the track.”
20 hours ago10:02 Archie Griggs
George Russell speaks out after Fernando Alonso penalty
George Russell has admitted that it was ‘such a shame’ to crash out of the Australian Grand Prix on the final lap in an incident for which Fernando Alonso has since been punished.
Russell said on X, formerly Twitter: “Such a shame to end the race like that. Totally caught out by the car ahead whilst entering the corner, I lost the car and some points for the team.
“Ultimately, we were not fast enough this weekend and we’ll come back stronger.”
21 hours ago09:09 Archie Griggs
Lewis Hamilton digs out Mercedes engineers
Lewis Hamilton has aimed a thinly-veiled dig at Mercedes by suggesting that nothing has changed since last year in a scathing review of their Australian Grand Prix disaster.
Quizzed on the current gulf in class between Mercedes and Red Bull following his battle with Sergio Perez, Hamilton said: “It’s a massive gap. I think they have a second on us, something like that.
“He was on fresh tyres but just the way he pulled away down the straight, I was like: ‘Wow’. Same as last year.”

Lewis Hamilton has aimed a thinly-veiled dig at his Mercedes engineers (Image: GETTY)
21 hours ago08:56 Archie Griggs
Fernando Alonso handed 20-second penalty
Fernando Alonso has been given a 20-second penalty for driving erratically when George Russell crashed out behind him on the final lap.
Russell previously suggested that Alonso braked much later than he was expecting, which caught him off-guard and resulted in him losing the rear end of his car.
Alonso, who slips to eighth place as a result of the ruling, has also been issued three penalty points.
22 hours ago08:05 Archie Griggs
Oscar Piastri offers verdict on Lando Norris swap
Oscar Piastri has admitted that it was ‘completely fair’ of McLaren to ask him to swap positions with Lando Norris, who ended up finishing on the podium.
“For me, it was completely fair,” said Piastri. “He qualified in front of me yesterday, went a bit longer on the first stop and he was catching me and was quicker at that point of the race.
“At that point, I was keeping with Leclerc and Lando was catching both of us, so I was honestly kind of hoping he’d be past me and go and get Charles.
“Of course, at home, I would have loved to be able to stay in third. But for me, that was completely fair.”
23 hours ago07:16 Archie Griggs
Christian Horner sets record straight on Max Verstappen
Christian Horner has insisted that Max Verstappen was ‘very gracious’ after his early retirement despite the Dutchman appearing to clash with a Red Bull engineer.
The 26-year-old was spotted in a frosty exchange with a colleague in the Red Bull garage before storming away from the scene.
Addressing the spat on Sky Sports F1, Horner said: “Obviously a driver is going to be frustrated when he gets out of a car from a retirement.
“I think he’s been very gracious with the team and all of the mechanics. It hurts everybody in the same way. It’s a matter of learning from it.”

Christian Horner has weighed in on Max Verstappen’s frosty interaction with a Red Bull engineer (Image: SKY SPORTS F1)
23 hours ago06:33 Archie Griggs
George Russell opens up on terrifying crash
George Russell has described his last-lap crash as ‘bizarre’, suggesting that he was caught off-guard by Fernando Alonso braking much earlier than usual.
He said: “I’ve gone off and that’s on me, but I was half a second behind Fernando 100 metres before the corner and suddenly he came towards me extremely quick and I was right on his gearbox.
“”I don’t know if he’s got a problem [with the car] or not. We’re off to the stewards so that’s a bit bizarre in a circumstance like this.
“I’ve got nothing more to say right now, I need to see everything and I’m just a bit disappointed with the race.”
Asked if he thought Alonso had brake-tested him, Russell added: “It’s clear that he braked 100 metres before the corner and then went back on the throttle again and took the corner normally. We’ve already seen the data of that.
“I’m not going to accuse him of anything until we’ve seen further but I was right behind him for many, many laps.”
yesterday05:42 Archie Griggs
FIA investigating George Russell crash
It has been confirmed that George Russell’s late crash is being investigated by the stewards.
It looked like he lost the rear end on his own while battling with Fernando Alonso, but it remains to be seen if any penalties will be handed down in the aftermath of the race.
We’ll keep you posted with any updates as they come in.
yesterday05:41 Archie Griggs
Full results
Here’s a look at the finishing order in Melbourne after 58 thrilling laps…
yesterday05:23 Archie Griggs
Carlos Sainz wins as George Russell crashes on final lap
Carlos Sainz takes the chequered flag in Melbourne, with Charles Leclerc coming home in second place to complete a Ferrari one-two!
Lando Norris crosses the line in third to snatch the final podium position ahead of McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri.
George Russell crashes out on the final lap with a heavy shunt into the barriers, ensuring the race finishes under the virtual safety car.
yesterday04:57 Archie Griggs
Carlos Sainz still leads with Lando Norris in second place
Carlos Sainz looks to be on course for victory in Melbourne, with the Ferrari driver leading Lando Norris by a margin of 10.1 seconds.
Charles Leclerc, who currently has the fastest lap of the race, is running in third.
Fernando Alonso will be hoping to battle for a podium finish, with the Spaniard on medium tyres in fourth place.
George Russell, meanwhile, looks set to claim a welcome haul of points for Mercedes in sixth.
There are just 17 laps remaining before the chequered flag drops at Albert Park.
yesterday04:38 Archie Griggs
Lewis Hamilton retires with power unit failure
Lewis Hamilton becomes the next driver to retire from the race, with the 39-year-old suffering a mechanical issue of his own!
His stricken Mercedes comes to a stop at the edge of the circuit, sparking a brief virtual safety car period before the race is allowed to continue.
It’s currently a Ferrari one-two at the front, with Carlos Sainz leading Charles Leclerc after 26 laps in Melbourne.
Oscar Piastri is close behind in third while Lando Norris follows his McLaren colleague in fourth place.
yesterday04:11 Archie Griggs
Carlos Sainz leads with Max Verstappen out
Carlos Sainz is currently leading the Australian Grand Prix after six laps, with Max Verstappen out due to a critical mechanical issue!
The Dutchman is forced to grind to a halt with smoke billowing from his Red Bull car and will take no further part in this race.
Lando Norris is running in second place, with Charles Leclerc third and hometown hero Oscar Piastri in fourth.
We’ve got a race on our hands in Melbourne!
yesterday03:53 Archie Griggs
Welcome back
Good morning and welcome back to our F1 live blog, with the start of the Australian Grand Prix just minutes away.
Will Max Verstappen earn yet another comfortable victory or can the Dutchman’s rivals give him a run for his money? We’ll soon find out!
Here’s a final reminder of the starting grid…
yesterday23:04 Fraser Watson
Good night!
Thank you for following, but in a few hours we’ll be back with all the latest from the race in Melbourne!
Join us from early in the morning for all the reports and race reaction.
yesterday21:52 Fraser Watson
Why are Williams only running one car?
A reminder there are only 19 drivers on the grid in Melbourne, following Alex Albon’s crash in first practice.
The chassis of the Williams was too badly damaged to fix in time for qualifying, and as the team don’t have a spare chassis with them in Australia, they had to withdraw it.
Team principal James Vowles made what he called “the hardest decision” of his life by handing Logan Sargeant’s car over to Albon and placing the American on the sidelines for Saturday and Sunday.
Vowles said his decision was based on Albon’s stronger performances since the start of the 2023 season.
yesterday20:40 Fraser Watson
Verstappen chasing his own record
Max Verstappen will start in pole position at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday as he hopes to make it three wins from three in 2024 and a record-tying ten consecutive Formula 1 race wins.
The Red Bull man himself set the marker when he won in Italy last season.
yesterday19:22 Fraser Watson
Hamilton’s ex-physio returns
Angela Cullen has been spotted in the IndyCar paddock in her first racing role since leaving Lewis Hamilton’s side.
Cullen was Hamilton’s physio and personal assistant until a a shock split a year ago. But she is now working alongside Marcus Armstrong, the Chip Ganassi Racing driver in IndyCar.
yesterday18:19 Fraser Watson
Ferrari star gets penalty
Oliver Bearman’s difficult start to the 2024 Formula Two season continued in Australia with a 10-second post-race penalty for a collision with Joshua Duerksen.
The teenager, linked with a move to F1, is still waiting for his first points of the campaign and is rooted to the bottom of the standings.
2 days ago17:47 Fraser Watson
Wolff and Hamilton disagree over W15 car
Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff have different opinions over Mercedes’ car, Sky Sports F1’s Ted Kravitz has claimed.
Speaking on Ted’s Notebook, Kravitz Hamilton doesn’t believe the W15 has the potential that his Austrian boss does.
Hamilton will start Sunday’s race from 11th, his lowest grid position at Albert Park since 2010.

Lewis Hamilton and Toto Woldd don’t agree over the W15. (Image: Getty)
2 days ago17:00 Mikael McKenzie
Sainz hunts Verstappen
Carlos Sainz fancies his chances of beating Max Verstappen this weekend after joining the Red Bull star on the front row.
“I will give it my absolute everything to do it because it’s been a while since Singapore, and he’s been on that top step since,” Sainz said.
“If there’s one weekend where we have a good pace, it’s this one. Tricky track to overtake, tricky on tyres. So who knows? I think we might have a chance.”
2 days ago16:29 Mikael McKenzie
Wolff pursuing Verstappen
Toto Wolff is still trying his best to convince Max Verstappen to ditch Red Bull to join Mercedes in 2025.
“A few months ago I didn’t expect that opportunity to be there at all,” Wolff explained.
“That Lewis could leave after this year, we knew when he signed his contract. But at the same time, it creates momentum for us now that we have choices.
“As Lewis’ replacement, there is only a small group of drivers who are interesting for us.
“Among them are some drivers who are not going to make any rash decisions. Nor will Max Verstappen decide where his future lies sometime in the next few weeks.
“At Red Bull, there is a certain situation. Therefore, Max will presumably also go to see how that situation develops.”
2 days ago15:56 Mikael McKenzie
Alonso injures tennis icon
Australian tennis star Jelena Dokic suffered an eye injury while watching an F1 race in Melbourne.
The 40-year-old, who reached the Wimbledon semi-finals in 2000, required treatment from a paramedic in the Mercedes lounge.
Alonso qualified in P10 for Sunday’s race but he went off track at Turn 10 and shot dust and debris into the watching fans.
Dokic has been left with a bloodshot right eye as she moved to thank those who helped her with the issue.
“When you go to the Formula One weekend at the Australian Grand Prix and a car going off track happens right in front of you, literally and all the rock debris flies right into your eye,” Dokic posted on social media.
“Fernando Alonso ran off the track and the rock debris that you see flying off the back wheels went straight into my right eye.
“Had to get treated for it but all good. Just a bloodshot and scratched eye. I will survive. Amazing and quick work by the paramedic at Mercedes-AMG Lounge. Thank you all that took care of me. I am all good. Ready to watch some more F1.”

(Image: GETTY)
2 days ago14:01 Mikael McKenzie
Verstappen threat
Max Verstappen has threatened to smash his Red Bull car up if Red Bull ever try to favour his team-mate.
Alex Albon smashed his car up during practice for the Australian Grand Prix so Williams gave him Logan Sargeant’s car to ensure he makes the race.
However, that means Sargeant had to be withdrawn from the rest of the weekend.
And that would not go down too well if it happened at Red Bull.
“I understand it from the performance aspect, of course, but that doesn’t change the fact that this obviously sucks for Logan,” Verstappen told Dutch media.
“Of course I’m not in that position, but then I would already be on the plane home. If that were to happen to me, I would completely flatten mine too, no one can drive.”
2 days ago12:56 Archie Griggs
Helmut Marko hails ‘incredible’ Yuki Tsunoda
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has heaped praise on Yuki Tsunoda after his eighth-placed finish in qualifying at the Australian Grand Prix.
“That was an incredible performance,” said Marko after the session.
“He was always there without mistakes. I hope that we’ll get into the points now because the speed is there. That was already the case in the first two races.
“That would be great because the first five teams are so strong, so if you manage to get in there that’s an incredible achievement.”
2 days ago11:56 Archie Griggs
Daniel Ricciardo ‘puzzled’ after latest poor showing
Daniel Ricciardo was unsure why he was so slow in comparison to VCARB team-mate Yuki Tsunoda during qualifying at the Australian Grand Prix.
“The lap itself, I was happy with it from my side,” said Ricciardo, who was knocked out in Q1 while Tsunoda made the top-10 shootout.
“I felt like I got everything out of it. When I saw it still wasn’t good enough compared to Yuki, I’m still a bit puzzled because I know what those laps normally mean.
“I crossed the line being like: ‘Yeah, that was a good one’. Those ones are normally enough, more than enough, and it’s still not.
“And then looking at the time he’s doing in Q2, I could tell you now, I can’t get seven more tenths out of it than what I got in Q1.
“I’m sure there’s a bit of track evo, but honestly, there’s still some things we’ve got to look at because it’s been definitely a struggle so far.”
2 days ago10:59 Archie Griggs
Zhou Guanyu set for pit lane start
Zhou Guanyu will start tomorrow’s Australian Grand Prix from the pit lane due to the Chinese driver needing a new front wing after qualifying.
During Q1, he suffered front wing endplate damage caused by vibrations whilst going over the kerbs at Albert Park.
The only spare front wing Stake brought was of a previous specification, meaning Zhou will need to start from the pit lane.

Zhou Guanyu will be forced to start tomorrow’s race from the pit lane (Image: GETTY)
2 days ago09:49 Archie Griggs
Alex Albon admits Williams atmosphere ‘not pleasant’
Alex Albon says it has been awkward at Williams since Logan Sargeant was forced to sit out of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.
The American driver is not taking part after Williams opted to give his car to Albon following the latter’s crash in practice on Friday.
“He [Sargeant] has been an absolute gentleman in the whole situation and he’s a real team player,” said Albon.
“On my side, it was just trying to do the job at hand because, at the end, you can’t really think about it too much.
“You know, you go and do your job and then that’s the best payback I could give to the team, and to him, was to try and do a good job today and tomorrow.
“Obviously the atmosphere and the environment that we’re in is not pleasant. We don’t want it to happen again.
“We’re still waiting on that spare chassis. Hopefully the tracks that are coming up aren’t as difficult or let’s say punishing.”
2 days ago09:03 Archie Griggs
Toto Wolff reluctant to make excuses for Mercedes
Toto Wolff has insisted that Mercedes cannot make excuses for their poor performance in qualifying ahead of tomorrow’s Australian Grand Prix.
Speaking after the session, Wolff said: “The conditions were a little bit different but there is no excuse.
“We have a car that is difficult and you can be narrowly in or out of the window. As much as I am annoyed myself at saying this for a long time, we will just continue working on it and trying to get better.
“It is not because a lack of trying that we are where we are, but it is not good enough. It is the whole interaction of aerodynamics, mechanics and the tyres.
“It is not a single topic but we’ve just got to keep our heads down and push through this. It is an illusion to [get] closer to Red Bull in the short-term but I still have to believe that there is more in this car.
“You see the performance in FP3, that is not a bad car, but it is tricky to be out of the performance window so we’re just going to continue to work on it.”
2 days ago08:16 Archie Griggs
Sergio Perez handed three-place grid penalty
Red Bull have been punished by the FIA with Sergio Perez dropping three positions after impeding Nico Hulkenberg in qualifying earlier today.
Perez initially finished in third but will start tomorrow’s race from sixth after he was found to have been at fault by the race stewards.
In a statement, the FIA said that Perez was not given sufficient warning by Red Bull that Hulkenberg was behind him until it was too late.

Sergio Perez has been handed a three-place grid penalty by the stewards (Image: GETTY)
2 days ago07:41 Archie Griggs
Ollie Bearman brought back down to earth
Ollie Bearman endured a torrid time of thngs on his return to Formula Two a fortnight after deputising for Carlos Sainz at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The British teenager slipped to 14th at the end of the F2 sprint race in Australia after being given a 10-second penalty for forcing another driver off the track.
Bearman was also handed two penalty points on his super licence for the infringement.
2 days ago06:56 Archie Griggs
Sergio Perez summoned to stewards
Red Bull could be handed a post-qualifying blow if Sergio Perez is penalised for impeding Nico Hulkenberg at the start of Q1.
The Mexican driver has been summoned to the stewards and a decision is expected soon.
2 days ago06:34 Archie Griggs
Lewis Hamilton opens up on surprise Q2 exit
Lewis Hamilton insists Mercedes have a ‘long list’ of things to improve on after his early exit from qualifying at the Australian Grand Prix.
“It felt great in P3, we were right there with those guys,” he tells Sky Sports F1.
“In qualifying, the inconsistencies with the car really messes with your mind. George did a good job. There is a long list [of things to fix].
“Our car is on a knife edge. When the wind picks up the car becomes unstable. It didn’t feel the same in qualifying, it felt better in P3, but we will keep working away.”

Lewis Hamilton was dumped out in Q2 after struggling for pace (Image: GETTY)
2 days ago06:09 Archie Griggs
Full qualifying results
Here’s a look at your provisional starting grid for tomorrow’s Australian Grand Prix…
2 days ago06:02 Archie Griggs
Max Verstappen beats Carlos Sainz to pole
Max Verstappen finds some extra pace in Q3 to get himself on pole for tomorrow’s Australian Grand Prix!
He is joined on the front row by Carlos Sainz, who edges ahead of third-placed Sergio Perez with his final hot lap.
It’s a strong effort from Lando Norris in fourth, while Charles Leclerc is only quick enough for fifth position.
Top 10:
1. Max Verstappen – Red Bull
2. Carlos Sainz – Ferrari
3. Sergio Perez – Red Bull
4. Lando Norris – McLaren
5. Charles Leclerc – Ferrari
6. Oscar Piastri – McLaren
7. George Russell – Mercedes
8. Yuki Tsunoda – VCARB
9. Lance Stroll – Aston Martin
10. Fernando Alonso – Aston Martin
2 days ago05:44 Archie Griggs
Lewis Hamilton out in Q2
Lewis Hamilton drops out of qualifying in Q2 in a massive shock after failing to pull himself clear of the bottom five!
He ends up less than one-tenth adrift of George Russell, who scrapes through to Q3 at the expense of his Mercedes team-mate.
It will be a bitter pill to swallow for Hamilton, who has already said that he does not feel comfortable in the car this weekend.
Out in Q2:
11. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
12. Alex Albon – Williams
13. Valtteri Bottas – Stake
14. Kevin Magnussen – Haas
15. Esteban Ocon – Alpine
2 days ago05:25 Archie Griggs
Ferrari quicker than Red Bull in Q1
Carlos Sainz goes quickest at the end of Q1, with the Ferrari ace leading Sergio Perez by less than one-tenth of a second.
Max Verstappen’s best lap is only good enough for third, with Charles Leclerc fourth ahead of Fernando Alonso and George Russell.
Lewis Hamilton scrapes into Q2 in 12th place but it’s a different story for Daniel Ricciardo, who is knocked out in Q1 at the Australian Grand Prix for the first time in his career.
There are only 19 drivers taking part, with Logan Sargeant sitting out after Williams opted to give his car to Alex Albon following the latter’s crash in practice on Friday.
Out in Q1:
16. Nico Hulkenberg – Haas
17. Pierre Gasly – Alpine
18. Daniel Ricciardo – VCARB
19. Zhou Guanyu – Stake
2 days ago05:21 Archie Griggs
George Russell fumes at Lewis Hamilton
George Russell was left frustrated with his own Mercedes team-mate in FP3 earlier today, with Lewis Hamilton getting in his way at the final corner.
Russell was quick to vent his fury over team radio, saying: “Guys, I always find Lewis at s**t points in the track. Every time!”
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Monday, 25th March 2024
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