MELBOURNE: Charles Leclerc has completed a dominant weekend in his Ferrari after converting his pole position into a comprehensive triumph in the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
The 24-year-old Leclerc extended his lead in the drivers’ championship while claiming his second win of the season following victory in the season-opening race in Bahrain.
Leclerc was able to hold off Red Bull rival Max Verstappen during the opening laps and defended well mid-race under safety car conditions to pull away for a decisive 20.524-second victory.
Sergio Perez overcame a slow start to take second ahead of the Mercedes’ combination of George Russell, who secured his first podium finish for the season, and Lewis Hamilton.
McLaren pair Orlando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo finished fifth and sixth.
Verstappen, the world champion, endured another frustrating race when a mechanical failure ended his hopes while he was running second 39 laps into the 58-lap race.
But Verstappen never really challenged Leclerc, whose Ferrari was clearly the quicker car under race conditions in Melbourne.
The drivers’ championship leader, who pitted on Lap 22, confirmed that when posting the fastest lap of 1 minute, 20.260 seconds with a final-lap flourish.
“The car was incredible today. Really. What a race. What a day,” Leclerc said.
His teammate Carlos Sainz, who finished on the podium in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, had less luck in a testing weekend.
After an issue in qualifying resulted in him starting from ninth, he dropped back further in the field with a slow start and then lost control on the second lap, ending his race.
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Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc wins Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix
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Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc wins Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix
- Extends his lead in the drivers’ championship while claiming his second win of the season
Motor racing-Ferrari can reel Mercedes in, says Hamilton
- Hamilton said Ferrari’s race pace was stronger than qualifying suggested, having started seventh on the grid
MELBOURNE: An upbeat Lewis Hamilton said Ferrari were right in the fight for the Formula One championship despite being outpaced by Mercedes in the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
George Russell led a Mercedes 1-2 ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli in the season-opener, crossing more than 15 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in third and Hamilton in fourth.
“I’m genuinely really proud of the team,” the seven-times world champion told Sky.
“I think we’ve done an amazing job to get the car to where it is. Of course we’re not as fast as Mercedes, we’ve got work to do, but we’re right in the fight.”
Hamilton said Ferrari’s race pace was stronger than qualifying suggested, having started seventh on the grid.
“I think all weekend I’ve been really, really strong, but qualifying didn’t show the true pace,” he said.
“We had a few problems through qualifying which meant that I was further back than I should have been.”
Once the race began, Hamilton said he felt competitive from the outset and believed he might have had his first podium with Ferrari if the cars were on the track for a bit longer.
“It was a really, really fun race and it felt good for me,” he said.
“I was obviously closing the gap right at the end to Charles. A couple more laps and I think I would have had him — maybe one or two more laps.”
While conceding Mercedes hold a clear advantage in the early season, Hamilton said the deficit was not insurmountable.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do to catch Mercedes, but it’s not impossible,” he said.
“I do believe we can close the gap. It’s not going to be easy because it’s quite significant, particularly on a single lap. We need to find out whether it’s power or battery power.
“But the car is just as quick through the corners, so we’ve just got to keep pushing.”
George Russell led a Mercedes 1-2 ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli in the season-opener, crossing more than 15 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in third and Hamilton in fourth.
“I’m genuinely really proud of the team,” the seven-times world champion told Sky.
“I think we’ve done an amazing job to get the car to where it is. Of course we’re not as fast as Mercedes, we’ve got work to do, but we’re right in the fight.”
Hamilton said Ferrari’s race pace was stronger than qualifying suggested, having started seventh on the grid.
“I think all weekend I’ve been really, really strong, but qualifying didn’t show the true pace,” he said.
“We had a few problems through qualifying which meant that I was further back than I should have been.”
Once the race began, Hamilton said he felt competitive from the outset and believed he might have had his first podium with Ferrari if the cars were on the track for a bit longer.
“It was a really, really fun race and it felt good for me,” he said.
“I was obviously closing the gap right at the end to Charles. A couple more laps and I think I would have had him — maybe one or two more laps.”
While conceding Mercedes hold a clear advantage in the early season, Hamilton said the deficit was not insurmountable.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do to catch Mercedes, but it’s not impossible,” he said.
“I do believe we can close the gap. It’s not going to be easy because it’s quite significant, particularly on a single lap. We need to find out whether it’s power or battery power.
“But the car is just as quick through the corners, so we’ve just got to keep pushing.”
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