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Russell Takes Pole for Mercedes at Australian Grand Prix

George Russell of Mercedes celebrates taking pole position following Qualifying as part of the 2026 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, 07 March 2026. (EPA)
George Russell of Mercedes celebrates taking pole position following Qualifying as part of the 2026 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, 07 March 2026. (EPA)
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Russell Takes Pole for Mercedes at Australian Grand Prix

George Russell of Mercedes celebrates taking pole position following Qualifying as part of the 2026 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, 07 March 2026. (EPA)
George Russell of Mercedes celebrates taking pole position following Qualifying as part of the 2026 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia, 07 March 2026. (EPA)

George ‌Russell took pole position and teammate Kimi Antonelli locked up the front row for Mercedes at Formula One's season-opening Grand Prix, but Red Bull's four-times world champion Max Verstappen crashed out of the first qualifying session.

Briton Russell lapped the circuit in one minute, 18.518 seconds, 0.293 seconds ahead of Italian Antonelli, who came back from a huge crash in final practice earlier on Saturday.

It was Mercedes' first pole in Melbourne since Lewis Hamilton's in 2019.

"It was a great day, we knew there was a lot of potential in the ‌car," said Russell.

"It ‌really came alive this afternoon.

"Also really happy that ‌Kimi's ⁠here... All in ⁠all a pretty good day."

Antonelli faces a nervous wait for his position to be confirmed after his patched-up car dropped cooling-fan parts at the start of Q3 and Norris ran over one, sending debris flying and triggering a red flag.

Stewards are investigating the incident.

Red Bull's Isack Hadjar will start third on the grid for Sunday's race, ⁠with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc fourth.

Home racer Oscar Piastri ‌and defending champion Lando Norris were ‌fifth and sixth for McLaren.

"It's been a very, very stressful day," said ‌Antonelli of his crash which triggered a red flag in ‌practice.

"But the guys today were the heroes, to put the car back on the track."

The new chassis and power unit changes have meant a steep learning curve for drivers, putting a greater onus on managing power deployment ‌and regeneration.

Verstappen came unstuck in the first session of qualifying when he locked up on turn ⁠one of his ⁠first flying lap, skidded over gravel and smashed into the barrier.

The Dutchman swore over the team radio before exiting the car unscathed.

"The car just locked on the rear axles. Fantastic," said the Dutchman, runner-up in last year's championship.

Verstappen will start at the back of the grid or in pit lane depending on the repair work.

Aston Martin's twice world champion Fernando Alonso was eliminated in Q1, along with both the new Cadillac team's drivers Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas.

Alonso's teammate Lance Stroll was unable to take part in Q1, with Aston Martin running out of time to rebuild his car following morning repairs.

Williams driver Carlos Sainz also missed qualifying.

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Bayern’s Neuer Out of Atalanta Tie with Calf Tear

06 March 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer warms up prior to the start of the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayern Munich and Borussia Moenchengladbach at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)
06 March 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer warms up prior to the start of the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayern Munich and Borussia Moenchengladbach at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)
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Bayern’s Neuer Out of Atalanta Tie with Calf Tear

06 March 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer warms up prior to the start of the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayern Munich and Borussia Moenchengladbach at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)
06 March 2026, Bavaria, Munich: Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer warms up prior to the start of the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayern Munich and Borussia Moenchengladbach at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)

Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer will miss his side's Champions League last-16 clash with Atalanta on Tuesday after picking up another calf injury.

Bayern said their captain suffered a "minor muscle tear" during the 4-1 win over Borussia Moenchengladbach in the Bundesliga on Friday.

Runaway leaders Bayern did not give a timeframe on Saturday for his return but German tabloid Bild reported Neuer will be out for two weeks. That means he would miss both legs against Atalanta as well as the Bundesliga match at Bayer Leverkusen.

Neuer, who turns 40 later this month, has already missed several matches with calf problems this season and was sidelined for 10 games last campaign with a similar injury.

The goalkeeper's deal at the German champions runs until the end of the season.

Neuer, who retired from international duty in August 2024, is yet to indicate whether he will try and stay on for another year.

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Verstappen Baffled by Crash in Australian Grand Prix Qualifying

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands spins off the track during the qualifying session for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park, in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP)
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands spins off the track during the qualifying session for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park, in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP)
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Verstappen Baffled by Crash in Australian Grand Prix Qualifying

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands spins off the track during the qualifying session for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park, in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP)
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands spins off the track during the qualifying session for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park, in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP)

Four-time world champion Max Verstappen said Saturday he had never experienced anything like the crash that left him 20th on the grid for the Australian Grand Prix.

The Dutchman came out relatively late in the first qualifying session in Melbourne but didn't manage a single timed lap, spinning at speed and careening through the gravel into the barriers at Turn 1.

He clambered out of his Red Bull shaking his hand and wrist, but said he was okay after being checked by medics.

"I just hit the brakes and suddenly the rear axle just completely locked out of the blue," he told reporters on the eve of the season-opening race.

"I don't know why that happened or how that happened. I've never experienced something like that before in my career.

"The rear axle just completely locked on, then of course you can't save that anymore at that speed."

Verstappen said hitting the barrier was not too bad, but the steering wheel snapped out of his hands, which is why he went to get a medical check.

"But all good," he added.

Verstappen, the 2023 and 2024 pole-sitter, has his work cut out on Sunday with a near-impossible task ahead to salvage his weekend.

George Russell led a Mercedes 1-2 with teammate Kimi Antonelli, with the Briton almost a second faster than third-placed Isack Hadjar in the other Red Bull.

"I said in Bahrain (at pre-season testing) 'Let's wait and see in Melbourne, and you will see how fast they are'," Verstappen said of the Silver Arrows.

"So for me, that's not a surprise. We know that we have to improve the car to fight Mercedes."

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Ahead of F1’s 1st Race, Red Bull Welcomes 21-Year-Old Hadjar to the Hot Seat with Verstappen

Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 5, 2026 Red Bull's Isack Hadjar during the photoshoot ahead of the Australian Grand Prix. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 5, 2026 Red Bull's Isack Hadjar during the photoshoot ahead of the Australian Grand Prix. (Reuters)
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Ahead of F1’s 1st Race, Red Bull Welcomes 21-Year-Old Hadjar to the Hot Seat with Verstappen

Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 5, 2026 Red Bull's Isack Hadjar during the photoshoot ahead of the Australian Grand Prix. (Reuters)
Formula One F1 - Australian Grand Prix - Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit, Melbourne, Australia - March 5, 2026 Red Bull's Isack Hadjar during the photoshoot ahead of the Australian Grand Prix. (Reuters)

Isack Hadjar has no lack of confidence going into his debut season at Red Bull Racing, despite having arguably the most difficult ride in Formula 1.

On the eve of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, the 21-year-old French driver said he expects to win a race in his first season with the team while squaring up against teammate and four-time world champion Max Verstappen.

It seems incongruous for him to say it, given Hadjar is only going into his second season of F1 and Red Bull doesn’t appear to have a major pace advantage heading into Sunday's race at Albert Park in Melbourne.

To add to Hadjar's challenge is that Verstappen has gone through four teammates in about 15 months.

One of them, Sergio Pérez, said in January that being Verstappen's teammate was "the worst job there is in Formula 1." Pérez was beside Verstappen for four years at Red Bull before being dropped at the end of 2024 with two years left in his contract. Pérez is returning to F1 this year with new team Cadillac.

Still, Hadjar is putting the off-track talk aside, saying the team is set to surprise everyone with the pace of the RB22 car.

"I would say I’m confident in our race car, what we can do in the race, a bit less probably on one lap pace," Hadjar told The Associated Press in an exclusive interview. "But if we’re going to surprise people it’s definitely in a good way."

Hadjar said he was stunned by the competitiveness of Red Bull’s new power unit, an endlessly complex technical project.

"I was very happily surprised with the reliability and drivability of the engine," Hadjar said. "I know that I can’t make engines, but I know what it requires to make something smooth to drive. And to do it in 3 1-2 years, start the project so late and (then) make it so well is so impressive."

Also impressive is Hadjar himself, who came back from an embarrassing formation lap crash on debut during last year’s Australian GP to score points at 10 of 24 races, including a third place at the Dutch Grand Prix, the fifth-youngest podium finisher in F1 history.

Hadjar will also benefit from having the same team boss, Laurent Mekies, who also made the step from Racing Bulls to replace Christian Horner at Red Bull last year in the aftermath of Horner's exit in the days following the British Grand Prix last July.

"Yeah, it’s good, not much change for me," Hadjar said. "I know him (Mekies) quite well, made my debut in F1 with him, we had some very good moments. So, it’s good not to step into unknown territory, so it’s good to keep going on the way I started F1."

One change Hadjar has made is important — a geographical one. He moved from Faenza, Italy where he was close to Racing Bulls to London to be closer to Red Bull Racing’s Milton Keyes operation. He’ll need all the help he can get to take on Verstappen in the same team.

As always, Hadjar is confident and looking forward to the challenge.

"I’m just happy, at my age, to be able to see what it’s like to be next to the best driver on the grid," Hadjar said, "with the same material and see what I can do, and just learn from him.

"Yeah, I’m just happy. And lucky."