While the Australian Grand Prix polesitter has won only three times in the last 11 Albert Park races, 3rd on the grid is most likely to score, and one of the top six on the grid is likely to retire. Here’s everything you need to know about the history of each grid slot at Albert Park!
AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX GRID STATS IN BRIEF
- Polesitter has won 3 times in last 11 races
- 3rd is most likely to score
- At least one of the top six starters is likely to retire
- 20th scored for the first time in 2022
AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX RESULTS: GRID OVERVIEW
| Grid | Last Win | Last Podium | Last Points | Last DNF | Best Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2023 | 2023 | 2023 | 2024 | 1st |
| 2 | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 | 2023 | 1st |
| 3 | 2018 | 2024 | 2024 | 2012 | 1st |
| 4 | 2010 | 2024 | 2024 | 2016 | 1st |
| 5 | - | 2013 | 2024 | 2018 | 2nd |
| 6 | 1999 | 2022 | 2023 | 2019 | 1st |
| 7 | 2013 | 2013 | 2022 | 2024 | 1st |
| 8 | - | 1999 | 2024 | 2023 | 3rd |
| 9 | - | 2010 | 2024 | 2023 | 2nd |
| 10 | - | 2014 | 2024 | 2010 | 3rd |
| 11 | 2003 | 2005 | 2022 | 2024 | 1st |
| 12 | - | - | 2023 | 2019 | 5th |
| 13 | - | 2005 | 2023 | 2006 | 3rd |
| 14 | - | - | 2024 | 2023 | 6th |
| 15 | - | 2003 | 2019 | 2023 | 3rd |
| 16 | - | - | 2024 | 2010 | 6th |
| 17 | - | - | 2023 | 2022 | 7th |
| 18 | - | - | 2002 | 2023 | 5th |
| 19 | - | - | 2016 | 2018 | 4th |
| 20 | - | - | 2022 | 2018 | 8th |
- 3 wins in the last 11 races
- 11 wins in total from pole
- 8 retirements for the polesitter since 1996
The polesitter won the Austrlaian Grand Prix in both 2022 and 2023 but pole isn’t a particularly lucky place to start from in Melbourne. The polesitter has finished on the podium in all but two of the last 12 races here, but they’ve also gone on to win the Australian Grand Prix just three times in the last 11 races.
In 2024, Max Verstappen recorded the first DNF for a polesitter at Albert Park in ten years (since Lewis Hamilton, in 2014). While the polesitter always finished in the top two between the two latest retirements, Charles Leclerc finally bucked a four-race streak of the polesitter finishing second in 2022, becoming the first Australian Grand Prix polesitter to win the race since 2015.
While pole has been converted into a win 11 times in the 27 races to date at the Albert Park track since 1996, the polesitter has also retired from the Grand Prix here eight times.
The only other results for a driver starting from pole at the track are second, third and fourth. 2003 is the only time that the polesitter here neither finished on the podium nor retired from the race – Michael Schumacher finished fourth that year.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM POLE POSITION AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 3 | 3 | DNF | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
- Won 4 of the last 7 Albert Park races
- 2022 saw first DNF since 2008
- Retirements in 2022 and 2023
The driver starting from second has won four of the last seven Australian Grands Prix. Since 2016, Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel, Valtteri Bottas and Carlos Sainz have all been victorious from second on the grid at Albert Park.
2022 marked the end of a five-race streak of podiums for the driver starting here. In 2022, Max Verstappen became the first driver to retire having started second since Felipe Massa in 2008. George Russell also retired having started here in 2023, recording the first successive retirements from second on the grid in Melbourne since 2001 and 2002.
Only seven races at Albert Park have seen the driver starting from second not finish in the top ten. The driver starting here has failed to finish six times in total. In addition to the six DNFs, Daniel Ricciardo was disqualified from the race having started second and finished on the podium in 2014.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 2ND ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 1 | 6 | DSQ | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | DNF | DNF |
- Only 5 DNFs in Melbourne history
- 4 wins, most recent in 2018
- 7 podiums in last 9 races
Aside from grid slots below 20th which have frequently been left vacant, third on the grid has supplied the least overall non-finishes at Albert Park, with just five.
In addition to four DNFs from third on the grid – the most recent of which was in 2012 – Sebastian Vettel failed to finish but was classified 13th in 2009 after crashing out in the closing stages.
The driver starting third has won the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park on four occasions, most recently in 2018. Seven podiums have been scored from third on the grid in the last nine races at the track, including two wins.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 3RD ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| DNF | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
- Podiums in 3 of the last 4 races
- Two wins – in 1997 and 2010
The driver starting fourth at the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park has been victorious twice, in 1997 and 2010.
In 2019, Max Verstappen became the first driver since 2015 to finish on the podium having started fourth at the track. Fernando Alonso recorded the grid slot’s second podium finish in three races with third place in 2023.
In 2024, Charles Leclerc finished second having started here – the best result for this grid slot since 2014, when Kevin Magnussen finished as runner-up on debut.
In the last nine Albert Park races, two DNFs – for Michael Schumacher in 2012 and Kimi Raikkonen in 2016 – are the only occasions that the driver starting fourth has failed to finish in the top six.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 4TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| DNF | 4 | 2 | 3 | DNF | 4 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 3 |
- No wins from 5th on the grid
- Least top 10 finishes of top 5 grid slots
- No podiums since 2013
The driver starting from fifth has never won the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park. It is the only grid slot in the top seven to have never won here.
Fifth is the grid position in the top five which has seen the most non-finishes and the least top ten finishes. The driver starting here has not finished on the podium since 2013.
Finishing 12th as the result of a post race time penalty in 2023, Carlos Sainz became the first driver to finish in a position outside of the points (without retiring) having started fifth at Albert Park. It’s the only time that the driver starting here has lost positions from where they started since 2018.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 5TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 4 | 2 | 4 | DNF | 10 | 5 | DNF | 5 | 4 | 12 |
- One win from 6th – in 1999
- First podium since 2012 in 2022
Interestingly, there have only ever been two races at Albert Park (2005 and 2011) in which all of the top six qualifiers finished the race.
2011 was also the only time the top six qualifiers at this track all went on to finish in the top six in the Grand Prix. It seems likely, then, that one big name will fail to reach the end of the Australian Grand Prix.
For three consecutive seasons from 2017 to 2019, the driver starting sixth failed to reach the end of the race. The grid slot has had better fortunes since F1’s post-pandemic return to Melbourne in 2022.
George Russell recorded a podium finish from 6th on the grid in 2022 – the first top three result for the driver starting sixth at Albert Park since 2012. Lance Stroll finished fourth having started sixth in 2023 and Sergio Perez finished fifth in 2024.
Eddie Irvine is the only driver to have won from this grid slot, doing so in 1999.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 6TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 2 | DNF | 8 | 5 | 5 | DNF | DNF | DNF | 3 | 4 |
- 2023 marked first DNF since 2011
- Most DNFs of top 10 grid slots
- 2013 is only win for 7th on grid
In 2023, Charles Leclerc retired from seventh on the grid on the opening lap of the Australian Grand Prix. It was the first DNF from the grid slot since 2011. In 2024, George Russell crashed out on the final lap of the race – recording consecutive DNFs for the driver starting seventh at the Australian Grand Prix for the first time since 2005 and 2006.
Russell’s retirement was the 11th in total from seventh on the grid in Melbourne, making it the grid position within the top ten with the most retirements overall since 1996.
2023 ended an eight-race scoring streak for the driver starting seventh at Albert Park. Kimi Raikkonen’s win from seventh is the only time that the driver starting here has won at Albert Park, as well as one of only two times that a podium finish has come from seventh – the other being third place for Nico Rosberg in 2008.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 7TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 12 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 | DNF |
- One podium finish – in 1999
- Five 4th place finishes since 2000
The driver starting eighth at Albert Park has finished on the podium only once. That driver was Ralf Schumacher, who finished third in 1999. Since then, this grid slot has recorded five fourth place finishes but has never returned to the rostrum.
The driver starting here has left point-less in two of the last four Albert Park races. Lando Norris finished 12th on debut in 2019, while Alex Albon crashed out in 2023.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 8TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 13 | 10 | 9 | DNF | 4 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 7 | DNF |
- Only podium in 2010
- Three top 5 finishes
- 11 non finishes
Robert Kubica is the only driver to have scored a podium finish from ninth on the grid at Albert Park, finishing as runner-up in 2010. That’s one of only three top five finishes for the driver starting here – the others being fifth places for Olivier Panis in 1997 and Giancarlo Fisichella in 2000.
In 2024, Lance Stroll finished sixth having started ninth, recording this grid position’s best result since Kubica’s 2010 podium.
The driver starting here has not been classified 11 times, including a first lap retirement for Carlos Sainz in 2022 and a DSQ for Kamui Kobayashi in 2011. Pierre Gasly was classified 13th in 2023 but did not reach the end of the race after a collision with his team-mate.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 9TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| DNF | 8 | DNF | DNF | 13 | 9 | 10 | 8 | DNF | 13 |
- No retirements since 2010
- 2023 saw first points since 2018
- Only podium in 2014
Along with 16th, tenth is the Albert Park grid slot which has gone the longest without a DNF. Adrian Stuil was the last driver to retire having started here, in 2010.
In 2023, Nico Hulkenberg became the first driver to score having started tenth since 2018, with the previous two races having resulted in finishes outside of the points. Sergio Perez finished only 13th in 2019, while Fernando Alonso continued the grid slot’s point-less streak in 2022.
Jenson Button is the only driver to score a podium finish from tenth on the grid at Albert Park, doing so with third place in 2014 – though he did not actually stand on the podium that day.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 10TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 9 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 13 | 17 | 7 |
- 3 podium finishes
- Furthest back win came from here in 2003
- 3-race points streak ended in 2023
11th is the grid position with the most podium finishes from outside the top six on the grid. Drivers starting here have gone on to finish on the podium on three occasions, and 11th position is also the record for the furthest back win here, which David Coulthard achieved in 2003.
Esteban Ocon’s retirement in 2023 ended a three-race streak of points finishes for the driver starting 11th at Albert Park, while Lewis Hamilton recorded the grid position’s second DNF in two years in 2024.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 11TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 11 | DNS | 7 | 16 | DNF | 11 | 9 | 7 | 9 | 14 |
- Only scored points 7 times
- 14 failures to finish
- Scored in 2022 and 2023
One of the unluckiest grid slots at Albert Park is 12th. The driver starting from 12th has scored points only seven times; fewet times than any other grid slot in the top 13.
In addition, the grid slot has recorded the most non-finishes, with 13 DNFs and a DNS in 2015. Two of the last six races for the driver starting 12th have resulted in retirements. No driver starting here has finished above fifth at the event.
In 2022, Valtteri Bottas finished eighth having started 12th, becoming the first driver to score points from 12th at Albert Park since Adrian Sutil, who finished seventh in 2013. Yuki Tsunoda followed Bottas into the points from 12th on the grid in 2023, finishing tenth.
All of the first five races at Albert Park resulted in the driver starting 12th retiring from the race.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 12TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 5 | 7 | DNF | DNS | 14 | DNF | 11 | DNF | 8 | 10 |
- No DNFs since 2006
- 3 points finishes in last 10 races
- Only podium in 2005
While no-one has recorded a DNF starting from 13th since 2006, Sergio Perez was disqualified having started from 13th in 2011.
The driver starting here has scored only three times in the last ten Australian Grands Prix. That includes a sixth place finish for Lando Norris in 2023 – the first top six result for the grid slot since 2012.
Fernando Alonso is the only driver to secure a podium finish from here, doing so with a third place finish in 2005.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 13TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 6 | 12 | 11 | 7 | 11 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 6 |
- More DNFs than any other grid slot
- Best result of 6th in 2002
14th has the third-most DNFs at the Albert Park circuit. In the last 11 races here, the driver starting 14th has retired five times and has scored only two points. Kevin Magnussen’s 10th place in 2024 was the first time a point had been scored from 14th on the grid at the Australian Grand Prix since Sergio Perez’s tenth place in 2015.
Mika Salo recorded the best finish from this grid slot, finishing sixth in 2002.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 14TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| DNF | DNF | DNF | 10 | 12 | DNF | 12 | 15 | 11 | 17 |
- Points in 4 of the last 9 races
- Podium in 2003 was only points between 1996 and 2011
The driver starting 15th has scored at four of the last nine Australian Grand Prix weekends.
Between 1996 and 2011, Kimi Raikkonen’s third place in 2003 is the only time that this grid slot scored points at Albert Park. It also remains the only podium finish from this position, as well as the furthest back podium finish in the track’s history, excluding pit-lane starts.
Daniil Kvyat was the last driver to score a point having started here. He did so with a tenth place finish in 2019.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 15TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 10 | 11 | 5 | 8 | DNF | – | 8 | 10 | 13 | 15 |
- No retirements since 2010
- No top five finishes recorded from here
16th on the grid shares the record for the longest amount of time since the last non-classified finish in the Australian Grand Prix.
The last driver to fail to be classified having started here is Kamui Kobayashi, who failed to finish following a first lap crash in 2010.
No driver starting here has finished above sixth – which is where Riccardo Zonta finished having started 16th in 2000.
The driver starting 16th has picked up points at the Australian Grand Prix in the last two seasons. Oscar Piastri scored the first points of his career with an eighth place finish in 2023, while Nico Hulkenberg finished ninth in 2024.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 16TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 16 | 14 | 10 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 15 | 9 | 14 | 8 |
- 5 non-finishes in last 10 races
- 7th place is best result
- Scored points in 2023
Chances of scoring points from 17th or further back on the grid are minimal – though Zhou Guanyu managed the feat in 2023 with a ninth place result.
17th on the grid has had five non-finishes in the last nine races at Albert Park, including a DNS for Kevin Magnussen in 2015.
Kimi Raikkonen’s seventh place in 2012 is the best-ever result for the driver starting 17th at Albert Park.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 17TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 7 | DNF | 13 | DNS | 15 | DNF | DNF | 11 | DNF | 9 |
- No points scored since 2002
- Best finish is 5th place
18th is the grid slot at Albert Park which has gone the longest without scoring a point. Mark Webber’s fifth place finish in 2002 is the last time that the driver starting here scored, while Pedro de la Rosa’s sixth place in 1999 is the only other points-scoring occasion for the driver starting 18th at the Australian Grand Prix.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 18TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| DNF | 13 | NC | – | DNS | 13 | 13 | DNF | 16 | 16 |
- 13 retirements since 1996
- Three points finishes
The driver starting 19th on the grid at Albert Park has retired on 13 occasions. 2019 marked the first time since 2016 that the driver starting 19th has finished the Australian Grand Prix.
Romain Grosjean’s sixth place finish for Haas in 2016 is one of only three occasions that 19th on the grid has scored at Albert Park, the other times being Eddie Irvine’s fourth place finish in 2002 and Jacques Villeneuve’s sixth place finish in 2006.
Due to pit lane starters, the grid slot was left clear in both 2023 and 2024.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 19TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| DNF | 15 | DNF | – | 6 | DNF | DNF | 16 | 12 | – |
- One point scored from 20th
- Best result is 8th, in 2002
Every grid slot within the top 20 secured at least two top ten finishes between 1996 and 2019, though no driver scored points as a result of their top ten finishes from 20th on the grid until 2022.
In 2022, Alex Albon became the first driver to score a point from 20th on the grid at Albert Park, finishing in tenth place. That’s not the best result from this position, however. Pedro de la Rosa finished eighth in 2002, before the position awarded any points.
Points have come from further back than 20th. Felipe Massa and Sergio Perez finished sixth and eighth in 2007 and 2012 respectively having started from 22nd.
LAST 10 RESULTS FROM 20TH ON THE GRID AT ALBERT PARK
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 |
| 14 | 17 | 12 | – | DNF | DNF | DNF | 17 | 10 | – |
There have been seven occasions that a driver has started the Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park from the pit lane.
Both Toyota drivers started from the pits in 2009, with Jarno Trulli finishing on the podium and Timo Glock finishing fourth.
There were two pit lane starters again in 2023, with Valtteri Bottas finishing 11th and Sergio Perez fifth having started from the pit lane. Zhou Guanyu finished 15th having started from the pits in 2024.
The other two pit lane starters at Albert Park – Jean Alesi in 2000 and Daniel Ricciardo in 2017 – saw their races end in retirements.
