Last November, Max Verstappen crossed the fifth line in Sin City, in one of Rand Norris.
However, it was enough for Red Bull drivers to secure a fourth consecutive F1 driver championship. Norris fought second in the rankings and wondered what had happened.
At last week's Australian Grand Prix, the two renewed their fight, with Norris firing an opening salvo that could become a compelling title fight. Norris held back Verstappen and elements, took the victory, starting the year with a driver's championship standings, defeating Verstappen's hold at that location, dating back to the 2022 Spanish Grand Prix.
But both drivers have reasons for optimism.
For Norris, he not only had his first chance to hold back Barstappen on the race's closed lap, but what he said was an improvement from last season – but the MCL39 showed a real pace throughout the week, making it seem like the best package on the grid at the moment.
For Verstappen, even everything, he was still on Norris' wings on the closing rap. Red Bull hinted at an upgrade package earlier this season, with 23 race weekends remaining, so there's plenty of time for Verstappen to return to the top.
Of course, the other 18 drivers may have something to say about the lawsuit before everything is said and done.
The battle will be updated in Shanghai this weekend at China's Grand Prix. Below are some of the other major storylines.
How do first-year drivers rebound?
Photo: Formula 1/Formula 1 by Bryn Lennon-Getty Images
When the formation lap began at the Australian Grand Prix, there were six drivers embarking on their first full season in Formula 1.
When the checkered flag flew, only two remained in the truck.
Oliver Bareman was behind the grid. This was like an accomplishment given how the rest of his week unfolded, with a gearbox obstacle that crashed in both FP1 and FP3 and prevented him from qualifying.
Then there was Kimi Antonelli, who was only two seconds into the podium finish on P4.
But for the other four, Australian Grand Prix was a competition to be forgotten. Jack Doohan's home race ended with a spin on the opening lap. Gabriel Boltreto and Liam Lawson retired later, with the boltrate spinning on lap 45 and Lawson crashing on lap 46.
There was Isack Hadjar after that, but the formation lap spin drove the rookie before being comforted by senior figures like Anthony Hamilton and Stefano Domenicali. Hadjar is currently facing one of the toughest challenges in sports, turning the page after a difficult moment.
For five out of six, it was the season's opening players that were forgotten. How fast can they move and concentrate in Shanghai?
How does a Ferrari rebound?
After months of accumulation, the day finally arrived for Lewis Hamilton's first race at Ferrari. Between Hamilton's promise at Scowderia and the past he and Charles Leclerc showed during pre-season Tests, expectations were headed for Melbourne. But, as Hamilton called it after the race, the Australian Grand Prix was a “missed opportunity” for the team. Leclerc placed seventh in the race, with Hamilton just behind him in eighth place. And Hamilton was leading the Grand Prix for a while, but the other teams jumped into the pits to switch to intermediates between rain and rain, and he ended up finishing 10th, with Leclair coming in second before him at P8.
As a result, Ferrari will sit in seventh place in the Constructors Championship standings and head to Shanghai.
“It was a tricky day overall, but we'll consider it,” Leclerc said after the Australian Grand Prix. “It's just the first race of the season. Yes, it wasn't the first race we wanted, but I look forward to having to start over ourselves for Shanghai and recover from our unfortunate first weekend.
“If you look at the McLaren pace, it was incredibly stronger than yesterday. So we have to look into it, we have to look into it, but we're in the back. But it's only one of the 24, so it's a lot of other races, so we have to keep calm and continue working in the right direction.”
“I'm grateful to be finished. I got at least one point,” Hamilton said. “Overall, it wasn't what I wanted, but there was a lot to get used to and get used to all the switch settings and changes. [the team] I was throwing [him over the radio].
“Then it was just the balance of the car… it was really, really, really, really tricky – today was really, really, really tricky. I think we'll improve that in the next race and hopefully get the car in a sweeter place. I think there's far more possibilities than what we can extract today.”
The Ferrari should be able to bounce back relatively quickly. Will it happen this weekend?
Which midfield team is the real thing?
The rankings for the Formula 1 constructors' championship following the Australian Grand Prix look a little different from recent seasons.
Specifically, the fact that Williams, Aston Martin and Sauber are fourth, fifth and sixth in the rankings. This will leave all three teams ahead of Alpine, Haas, VCarb and, yes, Ferrari.
I'm looking forward to more from Scuderia as mentioned above, but was the Australian Grand Prix extraordinary, or are these midfield teams true?
And what about teams like Alpine, Haas, and VCarb? Can they bouncing and bundle up the middle of Shanghai?
To take a step back, midfield battles are fascinating to watch early in the season. why? At one point, teams that have not achieved a position in the Constructors Championship standings will turn their attention to the 2026 season and a new wave of technical regulations. Think about what Guenther Steiner said to me earlier this season.
The team behind the midfield heading into May may decide to turn their attention to 2026.
The first F1 sprint race of the season
As mentioned yesterday, this weekend's China Grand Prix is the weekend of the first F1 sprint race of the 2025 season. This means that teams don't have much time to adjust to the circuit before lap times actually count. Following Friday's FP1, the team will proceed straight to qualifying for the F1 sprint race.
They will also need to get some work during that practice session with medium compounds that are C3 this weekend. Based on the rules of the F1 Sprint Qualifying, teams must perform moderate compounds in both SQ1 and SQ2. Only drivers who advance to SQ3 can turn to soft compounds.
Shanghai's resurfacement circuit
Is there anything I should keep an eye on this weekend? Raceman has completely resurfaced the Shanghai International Circuit. With just an hour of practice, the team doesn't have much time to get used to the new surface.
This was a kind of curveball for Pirelli, the exclusive tire supplier for F1. As Pirelli pointed out in them Preview of China's Grand Prix:
“The 18th run of China's Grand Prix, the second round of the season, not only did the team and driver, but also pose some special challenges for Pirelli to see how much it has changed compared to the past few years, starting with a completely resurfaced track and an hour of free practice. It should be smoother than before, and since this is the first event to be held at SIC, it's logical to expect the track to evolve very quickly.”
There's nothing like a surprise kicking off the second race of the season.
