Ferrari fury for Hamilton as Russell wins Aussie thriller

Mercedes claim impressive one-two finish in season-opener

- KIERAN JACKSON

By the closing stages, Lewis Hamilton was at the end of his tether. “Leave me to it,” came the call to his (temporary) race engineer Carlo Santi, a remark we’ve become accustomed to hearing. No doubt the Briton’s blood was boiling underneath his yellow helmet as another podium opportunity at Ferrari passed him by in round one.

The Scuderia’s decision not to pit Hamilton after a dozen laps under a virtual safety car was questionable. Their call not to box either the Brit or teammate Charles Leclerc was downright ignorant. Mercedes, and their lead driver George Russell, were only too happy to walk through the door left wide open.

It was far more dramatic than the Silver Arrows and Russell would have wished but, ultimately, their irrepressible power was too much. Having lost his lead at the start to Leclerc, Russell held his nerve, kept his cool and trusted the machinery beneath him.

Despite much fluctuation, Mercedes kept the front-row lockout they started with, as Russell won by three seconds to teammate Kimi Antonelli. It is Mercedes’s first one-two finish without Hamilton’s involvement since two F1 legends, in Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss, in 1955.

Leclerc, possibly the standout driver on the day, had to settle for third with Hamilton having to wait a bit longer for his first Scuderia podium. Fourth, once more. Lando Norris held off Max Verstappen’s 14-place charge to finish fifth. And as for Oscar Piastri? The most dreaded of exits, with a shunt on a lap to the starting grid. Across Albert Park, dismay wherever you looked.