F1 Australian Grand Prix LIVE: Fernando Alonso hit with penalty after George Russell collision
Follow live updates from the Australian Grand Prix as Verstappen and Hamilton retire in Melbourne
Max Verstappen’s bid to win a record-equalling 10 consecutive races went up in smoke as Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz returned from surgery just 16 days ago to win in Australia.
Verstappen suffered a brake failure after just four laps of Sunday’s 58-lap race at Melbourne’s sun-cooked Albert Park to end his winning streak which stretched back to September’s Japanese Grand Prix.
Sainz took advantage of Verstappen’s first retirement in 43 races to claim just the third win of his career a fortnight after he was ruled out of the previous round in Saudi Arabia with appendicitis.
Charles Leclerc finished second to complete a Ferrari one-two with Lando Norris next up as the British driver landed his first podium of the year. Lewis Hamilton’s miserable start to his final season with Mercedes continued after he retired on lap 17 with an engine failure.
Follow live updates from the Australian GP with The Independent
BREAKING: Fernando Alonso receives 20-second time penalty
What a shock, nearly four hours after the race.
Fernando Alonso has been given a 20-second time penalty for that incident with George Russell.
The penalty drops Alonso from sixth to eighth, with Lance Stroll up to sixth and Yuki Tsunoda promoted to seventh.
What do we think of that?
F1 Australian Grand Prix: Carlos Sainz wins the Australian Grand Prix
What a win for Carlos Sainz, two weeks after abdominal surgery!
Ferrari one-two in Australia!
Charles Leclerc comes home in second, with McLaren’s Lando Norris in third.
4-10: Piastri, Perez, Alonso, Stroll, Tsunoda, Hulkenberg, Magnussen
NEW TOP-10:
1. Carlos Sainz
2. Charles Leclerc
3. Lando Norris
4. Oscar Piastri
5. Sergio Perez
6. Lance Stroll
7. Yuki Tsunoda
8. Fernando Alonso*
9. Nico Hulkenberg
10. Kevin Magnussen
*Alonso received a 20-second time penalty for brake testing George Russell prior to the Mercedes driver’s crash
Driver Standings after the Australian Grand Prix:
1. Max Verstappen - 51 points
2. Charles Leclerc - 47 points
3. Sergio Perez - 46 points
4. Carlos Sainz - 40 points
5. Oscar Piastri - 28 points
6. Lando Norris - 27 points
4. George Russell - 18 points
7. Fernando Alonso - 20 points
8. George Russell - 18 points
9. Lewis Hamilton - 8 points
10. Lance Stroll - 7 points
11. Oliver Bearman - 6 points
12. Yuki Tsunoda - 4 points
13. Nico Hulkenberg - 3 points
14. Kevin Magnussen - 1 point
15. Alex Albon - 0 points
16. Zhou Guanyu - 0 points
17. Daniel Ricciardo - 0 points
18. Esteban Ocon - 0 points
19. Pierre Gasly - 0 points
20. Valtteri Bottas - 0 points
21. Logan Sargeant - 0 points
Lewis Hamilton reacts after dismal Australian Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton reacted to a terrible weekend in Australia after being forced to retire from the race on Sunday.
Hamilton, who has not won a race in more than two years, endured his worst qualifying in Melbourne in 14 years on Saturday, putting his Mercedes only 11th on the grid.
Although Hamilton made up a place early on in the race, by lap 18 the seven-time world champion was finding it difficult to keep his car on the racetrack.
Then suddenly, his power unit failed, with Hamilton reporting: “Engine failure!”
Lewis Hamilton reacts after dismal Australian Grand Prix
The seven-time world champion was forced to retire in Melbourne after a power unit failure
McLaren’s Lando Norris:
Asked if he could finish in second, he nods: “Difficult to know, I would say yes. We were quicker than Charles but we were undercut. That’s strategic. As a team, as much as we’ll be happy with a P3, was P2 possible? I think it was today. I’ll still take third and fourth.
“Japan was one of our best races last year. Ferrari have taken a big step. I’m expecting Red Bull to be better than what they were this weekend. We still have some weaknesses in slow-speed corners. When we improve that, then I’ll say every weekend we can compete for podiums. We’re missing that bit of magic.”
Max Verstappen rages as Red Bull car catches fire and forces shock retirement from Australian GP
Max Verstappen retired from a race for the first time in two years after a brake issue set his Red Bull car on fire in the Australian Grand Prix.
It looked business as usual after the three-time world champion – who won the first two races of the season comfortably – led from pole following a decent start.
However, within one lap, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz overtook the Red Bull around the outside, with Verstappen surprisingly admitting over team radio: “I lost the car, really weird!”
And by lap three, Verstappen fell further down the field with smoke pouring out of the rear of his RB20 car.
Max Verstappen rages as car catches fire and forces shock retirement in Australia
The reigning world champion made a stunning early exit from the third race of the 2024 season
George Russell:
On his crash: “My take is I’ve gone off and that’s on me, but I was half-a-second behind Fernando 100m before the corner, then he came towards me extremely quick, was on his gearbox. We’re off to the stewards, a bit bizarre in circumstances like this.
“It’s clear he braked 100m before the corner and then took the corner normally. I’m not going to accuse him until we learn further. I wasn’t expecting it, caught me by surprise. That part’s on me. Intrigued to see what the stewards say.”
F1 highlights from the Australian Grand Prix:
Highlights of the race in the UK will be aired on free-to-air Channel 4 at 12:30pm (GMT) on Sunday.
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