A good start for Antonelli

Andrea Kimi Antonelli's Formula 1 adventure has got off to a good start. The Italian picked up plenty of points after finishing fourth in Melbourne and with team-mate George Russell crossing the line one place ahead of him, Mercedes leaves Australia equal on points (27) with McLaren to head the Constructors' classification. 

That's quite a turnaround after Saturday's qualifying, when he failed to make the cut out of Q1, even outdone by Bortoleto, another Italian rookie, who beat him in Formula 2 last year. Antonelli thus joins the club of drivers who have scored at least one championship point, bringing the number to a total of 354. He was also the only rookie to score points, while Liam Lawson, Gabriel Borotoleto, Isack Hadjar and Jack Doohan all finished in the barriers. The only other driver in his first full F1 season to see the chequered flag was Oliver Bearman, although the Haas driver had already acquainted himself with the walls of Albert Park on Friday and Saturday. 

At the age of 18 years, six months and 19 days, Antonelli is now the second youngest ever driver to score points, with Max Verstappen still having that honour, after he finished seventh in Malaysia in 2015 when he was 17 years five months and 29 days old. The Dutchman is also the youngest ever winner in Formula 1, as he took victory in the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix on his debut with Red Bull Racing. Kimi could actually beat that record if he was to make it to the top step of the podium in either of the next two rounds, in Shanghai or Suzuka. Honestly, that seems unlikely, but back in Barcelona that day, no one thought Max could take on the mighty Mercedes and win and yet…