This is Verstappen’s first victory at the Melbourne circuit, and the first for Red Bull in Australia since Sebastian Vettel’s victory in 2011.
Dutch Red Bull driver Max Verstappen thwarted Britain’s Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton and won first place in a chaotic race at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, achieving his second victory in the Formula One world championship.
The defending champion started from the lead, and despite being overtaken at the start by the British Mercedes duo George Russell and Hamilton, the Dutchman maintained his composure to win the race, which saw the red flag raised three times due to the occurrence of several collisions.
As Hamilton finished second, Spaniard Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso completed the podium in third place.
Bad start
“It was a very bad start,” Verstappen said after the win. “I was careful on the first lap as I had a lot to lose.”
“After that, the pace of the car was fast. With those red flags, I don’t know, I don’t really understand. It was a bit chaotic, but we had a good pace and we won, which is important.”
The day was disastrous for Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc of Monaco, last year’s race winner, who crashed out on the first lap, while Russell’s car caught fire on the 19th lap and his race also ended.
This is Verstappen’s first win at the Melbourne circuit, and the first for Red Bull in Australia since Sebastian Vettel’s victory in 2011.
