A new season of Formula 1 begins with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne as the anticipation continues to build ahead of what could be a year to remember.
The closeness of the field in the second half of last year and no team seemingly having a clear advantage in pre-season testing has got everyone excited for the first race of the year at Albert Park on March 14-16.
If there is a favourite for Melbourne, most people think it is Lando Norris after McLaren impressed in F1 testing, but team-mate Oscar Piastri will be looking to win on home soil.
Reigning world champion Max Verstappen could be on the backfoot, but you can never rule him out of contention, and it will be fascinating to see how his new team-mate Liam Lawson fares.
Lewis Hamilton is hoping for a positive start to life at Ferrari after, arguably, the biggest driver change in F1 history, but there are so many other storylines up and down the grid heading into the Australian Grand Prix.
Oscar Piastri will get the support of the home crowd in Melbourne
Albert Park Circuit
Formula 1 first raced at Albert Park in 1996 and the Australian Grand Prix has stayed there ever since. Aside from the cancelled events in 2020 and 2021, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Melbourne has always featured on the F1 calendar.
Australia has not held the season-opener since 2019 but will host at least five opening races of the year from this season until its contract at Albert Park ends in 2035.
Track changes ahead of the 2022 event saw the circuit become faster to increase overtaking, with some corners removed or changed. There are four DRS zones and the best places to overtake are at Turns 3 and 11.
