The event marked the 39th time the Australian Grand Prix was held as a round of the Formula One World Championship and the 28th time it was hosted at the Albert Park Circuit. It was the first time since 2019 that the Australian Grand Prix served as the season opener. Pirelli supplied the C3, C4, and C5 tyre compounds for the weekend, designated as hard, medium, and soft respectively.
The race featured several significant driver debuts and team changes. Six drivers made their debuts as full-time competitors: Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), Jack Doohan (Alpine), Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber), Oliver Bearman (Haas), Liam Lawson (Red Bull Racing), and Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls). The event also marked Lewis Hamilton's first race for Ferrari following twelve seasons with Mercedes, and the first time in his career he competed without a Mercedes power unit. Other notable transitions included Carlos Sainz Jr. joining Williams, Nico Hülkenberg moving to Sauber, and Esteban Ocon joining Haas.
Three free practice sessions were conducted. In the first session, Charles Leclerc led early on medium tyres before Lando Norris set the fastest time on softs. The session was interrupted by two red flags: the first caused by Jack Doohan running wide at turn 6, and the second by Oliver Bearman hitting the wall at the turn 9–10 chicane.
Bearman missed the second practice session while Haas repaired his car. During this session, Charles Leclerc finished fastest, followed by Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. Nico Hülkenberg required a floor check after running into the gravel at turn 6. In the third session, Piastri set the fastest time. The session saw another red flag when Bearman spun into the gravel at turn 11, while Liam Lawson was forced to retire from the session due to a power unit system issue.
Qualifying took place on 15 March 2025. In Q1, Lando Norris set the fastest time. The session saw several incidents, including Liam Lawson oversteering into the gravel and Kimi Antonelli struggling with gravel excursions. Antonelli was eliminated in 16th place, alongside Nico Hülkenberg, Lawson, Esteban Ocon, and Oliver Bearman. Both Lawson and Bearman were later required to start from the pit lane due to car modifications under parc fermé conditions.
During Q2, Norris again held the quickest lap. Lewis Hamilton caused a yellow flag after spinning out, which hindered the laps of other drivers, including Gabriel Bortoleto. Eliminated in the second session were Isack Hadjar, Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, Jack Doohan, and Bortoleto.
In the final Q3 session, Oscar Piastri briefly held the lead after beating Max Verstappen's time by four-tenths of a second. However, Lando Norris secured pole position with a time of 1:15.331, which was 0.084 seconds faster than his teammate.
The race was scheduled for 58 laps but was shortened to 57 laps following an aborted start procedure. Isack Hadjar crashed his Racing Bulls on the formation lap, causing a 10-minute delay. The race was contested under changing, intermediate weather conditions.
Lando Norris led the majority of the Grand Prix. He briefly lost the lead to Max Verstappen after both Norris and Oscar Piastri lost control in the intermediate conditions. Piastri was momentarily beached in the gravel, dropping to 13th place, while Norris pitted shortly after his incident. Norris eventually reclaimed the lead and defended against Verstappen in the closing stages to secure the win.
Kimi Antonelli finished fourth after starting 16th, recovering twelve positions. His result made him the second-youngest driver to score a point in Formula One history. Although he was briefly penalized and dropped to fifth, a successful appeal by Mercedes reinstated his fourth-place finish. Alexander Albon finished fifth for Williams, the team's highest result since the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix.
The race saw six retirements, all due to on-track accidents, which triggered three safety car periods. The retirees included Hadjar, Jack Doohan, Carlos Sainz Jr., Fernando Alonso, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Liam Lawson. Ferrari experienced a difficult opening round, with Charles Leclerc finishing eighth and Lewis Hamilton finishing tenth after being passed late in the race by Piastri.
Lando Norris's victory placed him in the lead of the World Drivers' Championship for the first time in his career. This result ended Max Verstappen’s continuous streak at the top of the standings, which had lasted since the 2022 Spanish Grand Prix. In the Constructors' Championship, McLaren and Mercedes left the round tied at 27 points, with McLaren taking the lead. Red Bull Racing occupied third place with 18 points.