GP: Australia
Date: 17 March 2025
Winner: Lando Norris - McLaren-Mercedes
The curtain went up on an eagerly awaited season. There were so many unknowns and a few questions were answered after a rain-affected race.
Norris came out on top, although Piastri dropped down the order, so there was no one-two for McLaren. Verstappen did what he does and came home second, with Mercedes showing well with Russell third.
Ferrari were disappointing, beaten by six teams, with Hamilton only tenth on his debut in red, while Leclerc was eighth.
And that was the real surprise after things had looked so promising going into the season.
Plus many of the rookies were caught out by this tricky track. Hadjar for Racing Bulls and Doohan with Alpine went out, while Bortoleto had to stop because of a problem with the Sauber. Lawson and Bearman struggled as they started their first full seasons with Red Bull and Haas respectively.
And, despite their experience, Sainz in the Williams and Hamilton both were clearly not yet comfortable with their new mounts. The outstanding performance came from Andrea Kimi Antonelli, born in Bologna, Italy on 25 August 2006, in his very first Grand Prix. He took his Mercedes from 16th on the grid to fourth at the flag.
Good news for the Italian fans who hadn't had one of their own to cheer for in F1 since Antonio Giovinazzi back in 2021.
But it was much too early to get over excited.
In 2025 Pirelli will hit the 500 F1® Grands Prix mark during the season.
Legacy of Speed series looks back at the fifty most significant Grands Prix from Pirelli's time on the F1 World Championship trail.
