Russell storms to pole as Mercedes lock-out front row in Melbourne

George Russell took an imposing pole position as Mercedes dominated the first qualifying session of a new era of Formula 1 at the Australian Grand Prix. The Briton led team-mate Kimi Antonelli by 0.363 seconds and was 0.785secs clear of Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar in third place. Max Verstappen crashed on his first lap to leave a degree of doubt as to the extent of Mercedes’ superiority, but it was an impressive start to a new period of regulations by the former champions. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was fourth fastest, with the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris separating him from his team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

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Hamilton to get new race engineer for 2026 season

Lewis Hamilton’s race engineer from the 2025 Formula 1 season has been moved to a new role at Ferrari. Riccardo Adami will take over as manager of the Ferrari driver academy and their programme for testing previous cars. A Ferrari statement made no reference to Hamilton by name, saying only: “The appointment of the new race engineer for car number 44 will be announced in due course.”

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Portugal to return to F1 calendar in 2027 & 2028

Portugal will return to the Formula 1 calendar in 2027 and 2028. The race will be held at the Algarve International Circuit near Portimao, which held two grands prix during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. Portugal will effectively be a replacement for the Dutch Grand Prix, which will be held at Zandvoort for the last time next year. Portimao is a 2.89-mile track that swoops over hilly terrain and is highly regarded for its driving challenge.

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Dr Helmut Marko to leave role as Red Bull advisor

Red Bull motorsport adviser Dr Helmut Marko will leave the team after 20 years at the end of 2025. The 82-year-old has been an integral part of Red Bull’s success since the team formed in 2005, as they won six constructors’ championships and eight drivers’ titles. Marko, who was the right-hand man of the late Red Bull co-owner Dietrich Mateschitz, has overseen the development of 20 drivers, most notably world champions Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen, with whom the Austrian has a close relationship.

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Norris crowned World Champion as Verstappen wins in Abu Dhabi

McLaren’s Lando Norris won his first Formula 1 drivers’ championship by finishing third in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The 26-year-old won the title by two points from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who won the race to take his eighth victory of the year, one more than the Briton and his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri. Norris becomes the 11th British F1 world champion at the end of his seventh season in F1, it is McLaren’s first drivers’ and constructors’ title double since 1998.

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