MELBOURNE –
McLaren’s Lando Norris swept to victory in a wet and wild Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, holding off defending champion Max Verstappen in a white-knuckle finish to a Formula One season-opener littered with crashes and safety cars.
Mercedes’ George Russell was third on the slippery Albert Park circuit, where only 14 of the 20 cars finished in the treacherous conditions.
Norris, the preseason favorite for the drivers’ title, started the Formula One season as he finished the last at Abu Dhabi, with victory from pole.
