After a two-week break following the first two races of the season, Formula 1 is back with a bang this weekend as the 87th edition of the Australian Grand Prix gets underway in Melbourne.
The first of three practice sessions take place on Friday, March 22, leading into qualification before the race itself begins at 3 p.m. local time (AEDT) on Sunday, March 24. It’s the first race of the season to take place on a Sunday, after the opening two meetings of the season in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were both pushed forward to Saturdays in accordance with the holy month of Ramadan.
Season 2024 has certainly been following in the footsteps of its predecessor so far, with Max Verstappen storming home to win the opening two races of the campaign by a combined 36 seconds ahead of his closest challenger — Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez.
Verstappen was the winner of last year’s Australian Grand Prix too, pipping both Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso by less than a second. However, despite appearing to be one of the closest-run encounters of the season, the day was marred by incidents all over the track at the Albert Park Circuit, with the safety car being deployed no less than three times.
The last of these incidences led to the race being stopped and then restarted during the final lap itself, which the Dutchman won with Hamilton and Alonso on his coat-tails following a controlled rolling start. All 20 drivers will be hoping this year’s race runs much more smoothly, and Verstappen in particular will be aiming to continue his strong start to the 2024 season.
As the third of a record-breaking 24 races gets underway in Melbourne this weekend, The Sporting News has a full rundown of the weekend’s action, as well as TV and streaming details of how to watch every single minute of it.
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