After a pair of dominant Red Bull displays in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, Max Verstappen goes into the race weekend with a one-point lead in the standings over team-mate Sergio Perez having snatched the bonus point for fastest lap off the Mexican in Jeddah.
Despite reliability worries for Red Bull, the team is heavy favourite to repeat its strong results at the start of this season, but goes into a race the team hasn’t claimed victory at since Sebastian Vettel triumphed in the 2011 Australian GP – which remains the team’s only victory in Australia.
Elsewhere, Fernando Alonso will aim to maintain his impressive start to life at Aston Martin off the back of consecutive podiums, having claimed back his third place after overturning a post-race penalty in Jeddah.
Focus will also be on McLaren as the team makes its first public appearance since its technical management restructure, which saw James Key axed and replaced by former Ferrari engineer David Sanchez.
Full 2023 Australian GP session timings
Friday 31 March 2023
Free Practice 1: 2:30am-3:30am BST (12:30pm-1:30pm local)
Free Practice 2: 6:00am-7:00am BST (4:00pm-5:00pm local)
Saturday 1 April 2023
Free Practice 3: 2:30am-3:30am BST (12:30pm-1:30pm local)
Qualifying: 6:00am-7:00am BST (4:00pm-5:00pm local)
Sunday 2 April 2023
Race: 6:00am BST (3:00pm local)
How can I watch Formula 1?
In the United Kingdom Formula 1 is only broadcast live on Sky Sports, with highlights shown on Channel 4 several hours after the race has finished. Live streaming through NOW is also available in the UK.
Sky Sports F1, which broadcasts the F1 races, can be added as part of the Sky Sports channels which costs £24 a month for new customers. Sky Sports can also be accessed through NOW with a one-off day payment of £11.98p or a month membership of £34.99p per month.
Fans wanting to watch the race for free will have to wait until the Saturday night (qualifying) or Sunday night (race) to see the highlights on Channel 4.
How can I watch the Australian GP?
- Channel: Sky Sports F1 HD and Sky Sports Main Event
- Channel numbers - Sky: 406 and 401
- Channel numbers - Virgin Media: 506 and 501
Sky Sports has live and exclusive broadcasting rights in the United Kingdom, with the build-up to the F1 Australian GP race starting from 4:30am on Sky Sports F1 and on Sky Sports Main Event ahead of lights out at 6:00am.
When can I watch the Australian GP highlights?
- Channel: Channel 4
- Start time: Qualifying – 11:15am Saturday, Race – 12:30pm Sunday
Channel 4 has the rights to show the Australian GP highlights of qualifying and the full grand prix.
Will the Australia GP be on the radio?
Live radio coverage of every practice, qualifying and race for the 2023 F1 season will be available on the BBC Radio 5 Live or 5 Live Sports Extra stations and via the BBC Sport website.
Coverage of the Australian GP will start at 5:45am GMT on BBC Radio 5 Live and the BBC Sounds app.
Weather forecast for the Australian GP
Albert Park is set for mixed weather conditions throughout the race weekend, with a good chance of rain on Friday and Saturday but a low chance of rain on Sunday. Highs of 17 degrees Celsius are predicted on Sunday for the start of the race, with cloudy conditions and low winds.
Most F1 Australian GP wins
Michael Schumacher: 4 wins (2000, 2001, 2002, 2004)
Jenson Button: 3 wins (2009, 2010, 2012)
Sebastian Vettel: 3 wins (2011, 2017, 2018)
