Australian GP Driver Ratings | 2026 ShefF1 Driver Ratings

George Russell and Mercedes kicked off a new era for F1 in dominant fashion, but who else stood out on a fascinating opening weekend? ShefF1 rate all 22 drivers from the 2026 Australian GP.

McLaren

Lando Norris - 7/10

Donning the number 1 on his car, defending World Champion Lando Norris kicked off his reign with a solid qualifying, accompanied by a solid race. The Brit was plagues with issues across the crucial practice sessions, which put him on the back foot compared to his competitors, but he still managed to qualify P6, under a tenth away from his teammate. Sunday proved to be somewhat uneventful, but a good defence of Max Verstappen saw him cross the line P5.

Oscar Piastri - 5/10

It had been a decent home weekend for the Aussie, however Sunday's pre race crash ultimately meant the season couldn't have started off worse. The feeling amongst the paddock is that it was a mix of car and driver error which resulted in the incident. P5 in Qualifying was about the best he could have done and so he has to be given some plaudits for that.

Mercedes

George Russell 9/10

A dominant weekend from the pre-season favourite, who qualified convincingly in pole, and then took maximum points on the Sunday. Why not a 10? Well the race, despite being comfortable in the end, was made perhaps slightly more difficult than it should have been by the Brit through his fight with Charles for the lead early on. As well as that, Kimi was arguably closer than he should have been considering all the issues he dealt with over the weekend.

Kimi Antonelli 8/10

An incredibly strange weekend to judge for Kimi, who had plenty of errors, but ultimately delivered when it mattered. A huge crash in FP3 put him at risk of not making qualifying, and so it was impressive how he managed to get through to Q2 without any scares. A poor start in the race once again put him on the back foot, but a well executed race delivered the P2 he would have wanted.

Red Bull

Max Verstappen 8/10

Not the start to the championship Max would have wanted, but a strong drive on Sunday delivered points that may be crucial come Abu Dhabi. A crash in Q1 meant he started P20, but a typical Max comeback driver saw him get to P6 come the checkered flag. Max's pace on Sunday will definitely give himself and the team they can fight this season.

Isack Hadjar 8/10

Despite ultimately finishing pointless, Isack put in the best weekend of a Red Bull second driver for some time. An extremely impressive P3 in qualifying set him up for what should have been a strong points haul on the Sunday, however a PU issue forced the Frenchman to retire. Nevertheless, a weekend which showed plenty of promise that Red Bull may finally have found the answer to their second seat conundrum.

Ferrari

Charles Leclerc - 9/10

Though we have come to expect this from Charles, it was still a brilliant display from the Monegasque. P4 in qualifying, followed by a lightning start to the race that saw him challenge for the lead, was the most he could have done. While his final stint seemed to be slower than his teammate, he still had enough time in the bag to claim his first podium of the year.

Lewis Hamilton - 8/10

This weekend felt like a breath of fresh air for the seven time world champion, who showed for the first time in a while, glimpses of the driver we know he can be. A disrupted qualifying put him on the back foot ahead of Sunday, however strong race pace saw him climb to P4, and finish under a second off his teammate.

Williams

Alex Albon 5/10

A thoroughly disappointing weekend overall for Williams, and there wasn't really anything Alex, nor Carlos could do about it. Alex will be happy to have finished ahead of Carlos, but they both would have been expecting so much more.

Carlos Sainz 5/10

Carlos, through no fault of his own, was unable to take part in qualifying, meaning a P21 start. Like Alex, it will just be a feeling of disappointment.

Aston Martin

Fernando Alonso - 7/10

Fernando somehow managed to impress in the Aston this weekend, despite being completely written off. P17 in Qualifying, ahead of both Cadillac's, shouldn't be impressive, but considering the circumstances, it was. And then a rocket start saw him at P10 in the race, which is unbelievable, but it was short lived as the shortcomings of the car beared their ugly head. Nevertheless, somehow, despite everything, an impressive showing.

Lance Stroll 5/10

A nothing weekend for Lance, who was unable to take part in qualifying, and then used the race as a test session.

Racing Bulls

Liam Lawson 5/10

A strange weekend for Liam, who seemed to be slower than his rookie teammate all weekend, yet pulled out a lap in Q3 to see him start an impressive P8. Unfortunately, he was unable to get off the line in the race, which saw him plummet down the grid, and he was unable to recover. Points should have been the minimum thanks to the RB's performance, and so Liam will be disappointed.

Arvid Lindblad 9/10

A brilliant and fearless first weekend in F1 for Arvid, who showed why he has been so highly tipped by Red Bull. His pace was consistent across all sessions, and P9 in qualifying was more than anyone expected. But it was Sunday where he really shone, fighting as high as P3 in the early stages thanks to a great start. He looked set for big points, however ultimately those behind fought back, meaning the Brit finished P8 on his F1 debut.

Haas

Ollie Bearman - 8/10

An interesting weekend for Ollie and Haas, who looked lost in the midfield on Saturday, but delivered strong race pace on the Sunday to fight back to P7. He continued last years trend of beating his more experienced teammate, and kicked off the year on a high.

Esteban Ocon 5/10

Esteban just doesn't seem at home at Haas. Following strong comments about his form from Ayao Komatsu, Esteban would have wanted to kick off the year in front of his teammate, however once again, was just slightly off. In the race he was unable to make the same gains as Ollie, and got caught up once again, in his rivalry with Pierre Gasly. Finishing outside the points clearly isn't good enough.

Audi

Nico Hulkenberg 6/10

An unlucky, yet promising weekend for Nico and Audi. P11 in qualifying, despite being behind his teammate, was decent, however he was unable to utilise this as he was unable to start the race. Looking at Gabriel's pace, points clearly would have been on offer.

Gabriel Bortoleto 8/10

A very strong start to his campaign for the Brazillian, who made Q3, and then delivered 2 points for Audi on their debut with a P9 finish. Good strategy and good moves show this could just be the start for Gabriel and Audi.

Alpine

Pierre Gasly 7/10

Pierre was visibly disappointed on Saturday after the reality of Alpine's package this year was made evident. Like Williams and Aston Martin, plenty of promises had been made about Alpine's performance this year, however Pierre and Franco were unable to even challenge Q3. A much stronger Sunday, saw Pierre battle through to P10 despite damage. Alpine and Pierre will be hoping they can figure out their issues and put in more of a challenge to the midfield.

Franco Colapinto 4/10

A disappointing start to the year for Franco, who at times was close to Pierre, but ultimately too far off when it mattered. A poor Q2 saw him 7 tenths off his teammate, and then it was a Sunday to forget. A start infringement meant he was handed a 'Colapinto and Go' penalty, which all but ruined any chances of a points finish.

Cadillac

Sergio Perez - 5/10

Cadillac were incredibly far off the pace on their opening F1 weekend, which left their drivers with an impossible task to make anything of it. Sergio was ultimately the faster of the two drivers, but the sides pace meant it was more of a test weekend than anything else.

Valteri Bottas - 4/10

Slower than his teammate, and had to retire in the race. Both he and Checo will desperately be hoping performance is added, and fast otherwise this could be a lonely season for the Cadillac duo.