Antonelli 4th, Hadjar and Bortoleto out: how did the drivers on the grid fare in F1 before them?

They shone

By taking fourth place in the Australian Grand Prix, Kimi Antonelli has achieved a stunning feat. The new driver Mercedes, although a little lucky in having the perfect timing for his pit stop, managed a race full of maturity and wisdom at only 18 years old. However, he did not manage to do as well as the man he replaced at Mercedes. For his discovery of the Formula 1 in Australia in 2007, Lewis Hamilton had managed to reach the podium. Qualifying fourth, he finished third, then went on to achieve eight more consecutive podium finishes. The birth of a future champion.

First race and already first podium for Lewis Hamilton. More than 200 more will follow. @DPPI

They scored points

Scoring points on your Formula 1 debut is no easy feat, especially since it depends greatly on the quality of the car you have in your hands. It is with a Toro Rosso that Carlos Sainz discovered the elite of the world's motorsports scene ten years ago. With the Faenza team, the Madrilenian had a very strong first weekend, qualifying 7th before scoring the two points for 9th place. Nine years later, while wearing the colors of FerrariCarlos Sainz has suffered an appendicitis attack and has to withdraw from the Saudi Arabian GP. His replacement for the day, Oliver Bearman, distinguished himself by taking 7th place in his very first Grand Prix: a performance which opened the doors to a starting position with Haas in 2025. Finally, Yuki tsunoda had also managed to enter the top 10 in his first GP by finishing 9th in the 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix.

Oliver Bearman, 7th in Saudi Arabia last year, had a successful debut with Ferrari. @DPPI

They did the job

The vast majority of rookies don't start their F1 journey with a bang, but with a learning race to get used to the harsh reality of Formula 1. So often the beginnings are rather discreet. Fernando Alonso (12th in Australia in 2001), Lando Norris (12th in Australia in 2019), Charles Leclerc (13th in Australia in 2018), Liam Lawson. (13th in the Netherlands in 2023), Nico Hulkenberg (14th in Bahrain in 2010), Pierre Gasly (14th in Malaysia in 2017), Alex Albon (14th in Australia in 2019), jack doohan (15th in Abu Dhabi in 2024), Esteban Ocon (16th in Belgium in 2016) and George Russell (16th in Australia in 2019): none scored a point in their first Grand Prix, but all gained experience by facing the other drivers on the grid for the first time on track.

Reunited on the podium in Melbourne on Sunday, Lando Norris and George Russell made their Australian debuts in 2019. @DPPI

They gave up

This year's Australian Grand Prix was cut short for Gabriel Bortoleto, left at fault, and especially for Isaac Hadjar, who hit the wall during the formation lap. The two men, who fought for the title in F2 Last year, they dreamed of a better start. But to reassure themselves, they can say that others before them had also not seen the finish of their first Grand Prix. Max Verstappen had suffered a mechanical problem, which forced him to stop during the 2015 Australian GP. The mechanics had also put an end to the ordeal ofOscar piastri in Bahrain in 2023, while the McLaren was very withdrawn that weekend. Finally, Lance stroll was forced to stop his 2017 Australian GP due to a brake problem. Bortoleto and Hadjar are therefore the only drivers on the current grid to have retired from their first Grand Prix due to an accident.

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Max Verstappen's F1 career began with a retirement. @DPPI