Apr 11

Apr 11 Charles Leclerc dominant in Australian Grand Prix victory as rival Max Verstappen retires

Charles Leclerc has won the Australian Grand Prix in dominant fashion as rival Max Verstappen retired with an engine issue.

Charles Leclerc celebrates victory at the Australian Grand Prix. *(Scuderia Ferrari)*

Leclerc started on pole and held off Verstappen at the start and through two safety car restarts before the Red Bull driver suffered an engine fire on lap 39.

"What a great victory this was for us!" said the Ferrari driver.

"We managed our pace well and were extremely competitive."

"We didn’t suffer from tyre degradation, even when pushing hard."

"The car was just amazing and I’m very pleased with how my race went."

Charles Leclerc, Segio Perez, and George Russell on the podium at the Australian Grand Prix. *(Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool)*

Leclerc took the chequered flag for Ferrari 240th victory and his second in the three races so far in the 2022 season.

The Monegasque driver holds the upper hand in the driver standings, with rival Verstappen being forced to retire from two of the three races this season.

"On paper, this was a track that we expected to be tough for us, so we have to review our data because we were in fact very strong," said Leclerc.

"It’s a great way to start the season, but we have to keep in mind that we are only three races into a very long championship."

"We can’t afford to relax at any moment and have to stay on top of things, most of all on development."

"Congratulations to everyone on our team."

"What an amazing job you have all done!"

"I’m very proud of how far we’ve come and can’t wait to continue fighting."

"Forza Ferrari!"

Sergio Perez celebrates on the podium at the Australian Grand Prix. (Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool)

Carlos Sainz was only able to reach ninth in qualifying and his woes were compounded in the race when he spun out into the gravel on lap two, bringing out the safety car.

The safety car was brought out a second time when Sebastian Vettel retired after hitting the wall on the exit of turn four, a disappointing result for the Aston Martin driver in his first grand prix of the year.

Verstappen pitted on lap 18 while Leclerc went long on his hard tyres, finally pitting on lap 22.

Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez went side-by-side through the lakeside section for fifth after both emerging from their pit stops, while George Russell was promoted to third after saving time by pitting behind the safety car.

The field bunched up at the second restart, with Alonso leading a gaggle of five cars battling away for fourth position.

Sergio Perez made his way past Russell for the final step on the podium on lap 36, before Verstappen peeling off and retired the car with an engine fire on lap 39.

Victory was all but guaranteed for Charles Leclerc, who took the race win by more than 20 seconds, with an extra point for fastest lap in the process.

Perez was second with Russell in third, while McLaren's Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo finished in fifth and sixth respectively for their best result so far this season.

Williams’ Alex Albon went extremely long on his set of hard tyres, running until lap 57 on his first set before returning on the final lap to take the chequered flag in tenth.

“It was a good result but, unfortunately, we lost Max and it would have been great to have a double podium for the team,” said Perez.

:On the other hand, it is a good result after so many unlucky moments in the first couple of races for me.”

It marked the first podium and best result of the 2022 season for both Sergio Perez and George Russell, with Russell scoring his first ever podium for Mercedes.

The 2022 Formula 1 season resumes April 22-24 at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc confidently leads the drivers championship on 71 points ahead of George Russell on 37 points.

Watch every session of the 2022 Formula 1 season live on Kayo Sports. Get your 14-day free trial today!

2022 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix - Results