The countdown for the F1 season’s curtain-raiser in Melbourne is well underway after pre-season testing in Bahrain finished last week. 

All eyes are on March 4 but the early signs are that there could be another enthralling race for the Drivers’ and Constructers Championships after Ferarri’s Charles Leclerc topped the final day to finish 0.879s quicker than defending champion Lando Norris.

F1 icon Lewis Hamilton, and Leclerc’s teammate, endured a mixed few days after the Brit completed only a handful of laps and watching on from the Ferrari garage on Friday.

There are plenty of talking points surrounding the rest of the grid. Max Verstappen will be in the final year of his Red Bull contract by the end of the 2026 season and it is a huge one for the F1 giants as their very first engine, developed by Ford, hits the tarmac. Meanwhile, there were worrying signs as Yuki Tsunoda was forced to escape after the Red Bull car caught fire at a fan event in San Francisco.

With all of that being said, Express Sport has got you covered for the latest F1 headlines as we head towards the first race of the season in Melbourne…