Oscar Piastri’s win places Australia at the forefront of the Formula One world championship for the first time since 2010.
At the age of 24, Piastri marked this season by being the initial driver to clinch a win without starting from pole position. He comfortably topped the race, finishing ahead of Max Verstappen of Red Bull, who received a five-second penalty for cutting the track and gaining an advantage early in the race on Sunday.
Finishing in third place, Charles Leclerc represented Ferrari’s first appearance on the podium this season. Piastri’s teammate from McLaren, Lando Norris, came in fourth, while George Russell of Mercedes and Kimi Antonelli rounded out the top six.
With his third victory this season and second in a row following his win in Bahrain, Piastri emerges as the first Australian driver to lead the drivers’ championship since Mark Webber in 2010, a first in Piastri’s F1 career.
Starting from second position, Piastri took the lead after Verstappen’s penalty was served during a pit stop on Lap 22. Piastri finished 2.84 seconds ahead of the reigning world champion, showcasing a strong performance on the 6.1km track.
Besides the wins in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, Piastri also triumphed in China during the second race of the season. McLaren has dominated the first five races, with Norris winning the season opener in Australia, bringing the team’s total race wins to four out of five.
Verstappen, who has won the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix in two of the last three years, had to settle for second place this time.
In the ongoing drivers’ championship, Piastri holds 99 points, slightly ahead of Norris’s 89 and Verstappen’s 87. As for the constructors’ championship, McLaren extended their lead over Mercedes by 77 points.
