Pre-season testing suggested Mercedes would again dominate, though Ferrari made a significant step forward and Williams also showed competitiveness. Red Bull continued to struggle with their Renault power unit, completing the second-fewest testing laps of any team in Jerez. The new McLaren-Honda partnership got off to a poor start, completing roughly half the laps of the next worst team in testing.
Fernando Alonso was absent, having suffered a concussion in a testing crash at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. McLaren reserve driver Kevin Magnussen — who had debuted at the 2014 Australian Grand Prix finishing second — took his place. Carlos Sainz Jr. and Max Verstappen made their Formula One debuts for Toro Rosso; Verstappen became the youngest driver in Formula One history at 17 years and 166 days old.
Manor Marussia returned following a period of administration but were unable to participate in any practice or qualifying sessions after a software glitch prevented their year-old Ferrari engines from starting. The field raced with 18 cars.
Sauber were entangled in a legal dispute with Dutch driver Giedo van der Garde, who obtained court orders from the Supreme Court of Victoria compelling the team to allow him to race. After several days of proceedings and appeals, van der Garde announced on the Saturday morning that he would not race in Melbourne, allowing Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr to participate. Neither Sauber drove on Friday morning while the team managed the legal risk of having assets seized for non-compliance.
Hamilton was fastest in all three sessions and took pole by over half a second — his fourth at Albert Park and his 39th overall. Rosberg ran wide onto the grass at turn 15 on his first Q3 lap and could not improve on his second attempt. Vettel and Räikkönen qualified fourth and fifth, reflecting Ferrari's improved pace. Button and Magnussen failed to reach Q2.
Valtteri Bottas was declared unfit to start after suffering an annular disc tear during qualifying. Kvyat's Red Bull and Magnussen's McLaren both failed on the formation lap — Kvyat with transmission problems and Magnussen with an engine failure — leaving fifteen starters, the fewest for a season-opening race since 1963 and the lowest total since the 2005 United States Grand Prix.
A first-lap collision at turn one involving Räikkönen, Nasr, and Maldonado sent Maldonado into the barrier at turn two and triggered a safety car. Both Lotus cars retired almost immediately; Grosjean's engine lost power on lap two.
Hamilton controlled the race after the restart, conserving fuel before stepping up pace and stopping for fresh medium compound tyres on lap 25. He resumed the lead after Rosberg's corresponding stop. Verstappen retired on lap 34 with an engine failure while running sixth. Räikkönen retired on lap 41 at turn four when a cross-threaded left-rear wheel peg could not be fully tightened during his pit stop, causing his tyre to come loose.
Hamilton took his 34th Grand Prix victory, 1.3 seconds ahead of Rosberg. Vettel was third, Massa fourth, and Nasr fifth. The remaining points positions were filled by Ricciardo, Hülkenberg, Ericsson, Sainz, and Pérez. Only eleven cars finished the race. Ericsson, Nasr, and Sainz all scored their first Formula One points, with Nasr and Sainz doing so on debut. Nasr's fifth place was the highest finishing position achieved by a Brazilian driver on their Formula One debut.
The dominant Mercedes display prompted criticism from rivals. Ricciardo apologised to Australian fans for what he called a "boring" race. Red Bull called on the FIA to apply rule changes to challenge Mercedes, while Toto Wolff reacted forcefully to those suggestions. Vettel's exchange with Rosberg at the post-race press conference — when Rosberg said he hoped rivals would get closer — drew laughter, with Vettel asking him directly whether he genuinely hoped to slow down. Sauber scored 14 constructor points at the opening round, compared to none in the entire 2014 season.
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