MELBOURNE (Reuters) -McLaren's Lando Norris swept to victory in a wet and wild Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, holding off defending champion Max Verstappen in a white-knuckle finish to a Formula One season-opener littered with crashes and safety cars.
Mercedes' George Russell was third on the slippery Albert Park circuit where only 14 of the 20 cars finished in the treacherous conditions.
Norris, the pre-season favourite for the drivers' title, started the Formula One season as he finished the last at Abu Dhabi, with victory from pole.
His teammate Piastri started second on the grid but finished ninth, his dreams of becoming the first home driver to claim victory or a consolation podium ended with a skid into grass.
Lewis Hamilton's debut for Ferrari proved a damp squib with the Briton finishing 10th, two places behind teammate Charles Leclerc.
(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
