In Pictures: Australia 2025

The 2025 F1 season started Down Under, and what a start it was!

The Melbourne circuit at Albert Park saw a record attendance of 465,498 fans during the weekend.

The 75th FIA Formula 1 World Championship got underway in Australia—Melbourne’s Albert Park, to be precise—home to a semi-permanent street circuit. The race in the capital of the state of Victoria marked the start of a long, 24-race season. This record number was first reached last year, and between now and the weekend of December 5–7, Formula 1 will visit five continents.

The track surface has remained unchanged since it was renewed in 2022 and is not too harsh on tires. The only modification to the track layout—which features some sections made up of roads usually open to normal traffic—is at Turns 6 and 7, where the barriers and curbs have been adjusted as a precautionary measure to prevent a recurrence of past accidents in this section. At 5.278 kilometers long, the circuit combines fast straights with low- to medium-speed technical corners and some heavy braking zones.

KEYWORD: GRAINING

Graining is a term used in motor racing to describe a phenomenon that occurs on the surface of tires. When the surface is subjected to stress at a level where the compound starts to break up, microcracks form, creating surface irregularities on the tread. These irregularities, with peaks and troughs varying in depth depending on the severity of the phenomenon, reduce grip and significantly affect the car’s performance—especially in mid-corner, under braking, or during acceleration.

Graining most commonly occurs when track temperatures are low or when the tires are not in their optimal operating window for grip. The circuit layout, driving style, and car setup also play a role. Managing graining is a vital part of race strategy, as it contributes to tire degradation and wear, ultimately impacting a car’s overall performance throughout the race.

FRIDAY

It’s been just under a year since the 2024 Australian Grand Prix, but the outcome of the first day of free practice remained the same, with Lando Norris quickest in FP1 and Charles Leclerc fastest overall.

The McLaren driver topped the timesheets at the end of the first hour with a lap of 1:17.252, which is 1.312 secondsquicker than his best lap in this session a year ago. The gap was smaller for the Ferrari driver, who posted 1:16.439 today compared to 1:17.277 last March.

SATURDAY

The third free practice session saw plenty of running on the Soft compound, although the Hard tire also played a role.

As for qualifying, the first session of the 2025 season ended with an all-McLaren front row. Lando Norris secured pole position after a closely fought final phase, setting a time of 1:15.096 to beat his Australian teammate, Oscar Piastri, by 0.084 seconds.

This marked Norris’ tenth career pole and his second in a row, following his pole position at last year’s season finale in Abu Dhabi. Tomorrow, a McLaren will start the Australian Grand Prix from pole for the 12th time—the last occurrence dating back to 2012, when Lewis Hamilton led a one-two for the Woking squad ahead of Jenson Button.

SUNDAY

A dramatic race in Melbourne saw Lando Norris claim victory from pole in changing conditions.

Light rain at the start saw all drivers on intermediates except Lance Stroll, who opted for extreme wets. However, Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) went off track, leading to an aborted start. When the race resumed ten minutes later, Stroll had switched to intermediates.

Aston Martin led the first seven laps—but only via the DB9 Safety Car, deployed after Jack Doohan (Alpine) and Carlos Sainz (Williams) crashed out. A second Safety Car followed after Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) hit the barriers, after which drivers switched to slicks. However, the return of rain forced another round of stops for intermediates, which remained until the checkered flag.

Norris secured his fifth career win and McLaren’s 190th, also claiming pole and fastest lap for his second career hat trick. McLaren initially looked set for a dominant one-two but had to fight to keep both cars in the points.

Max Verstappen (Red Bull) finished just 0.895 seconds behind, while George Russell (Mercedes) took third, 8.481 seconds adrift.