The reigning world champion saw off both Mercedes drivers to take pole, while Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez skated off track into the gravel in Q1, leaving him to qualify down in last place for the Albert Park race.
Perez blamed a brake balance issue for his qualifying off, which was a problem he also suffered throughout final practice.
With Mercedes showing promising pace after a tough start to the year, George Russell feels he and Lewis Hamilton can take on the dominant Verstappen and Red Bull in the grand prix, rather than focusing on defending their positions from the Aston Martin and Ferrari drivers behind.
Alonso qualified in fourth place ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, with the sister Aston Martin of Lance Stroll in sixth in front of Charles Leclerc.
Alex Albon impressed in qualifying to secure eighth place on the grid for Williams, ahead of the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg.
When is the F1 Australian Grand Prix?
Date: Sunday 2 April 2023
Start time: 6:00am BST, 3:00pm local time
The third round of the 2023 F1 season, the Australian GP at Albert Park, gets underway at 3:00pm local time (6:00am BST) on Sunday 2 April.
How can I watch Formula 1?
In the United Kingdom, Formula 1 is 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 £11.98 or a month membership of £34.99 per month.
How can I watch the F1 Australian GP?
In the United Kingdom, Sky Sports will be live broadcasting the Australian GP, with the race shown live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event. Pre-race coverage will start at 4:30am BST on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event, ahead of the race start at 6:00am BST.
• Channels: Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event
• Start time: 4:30am BST on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event, Sunday 2 April 2023
Autosport will be running a live text coverage of the Australian GP here.
When can I watch the F1 Australian GP highlights?
In the United Kingdom, Channel 4 is broadcasting highlights of the Australian GP at 12:30pm BST on Sunday. The full programme will run for two hours and 30 minutes, covering the pre-race, the race highlights and the initial post-race reaction to wrap up the major talking points of the race weekend.
For the entire 2023 F1 season, Channel 4 will broadcast highlights of every qualifying and race of each event. The highlights will also be available on Channel 4’s on demand catch-up services.
Channel: Channel 4
Start time: 12:30pm BST, Sunday 2 April 2023
Will the F1 Australian 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 and 5 Live Sports Extra stations, the BBC Sounds app and via the BBC Sport website.
Live coverage of the Australian GP will start at 5:30am BST on BBC Radio 5 Live and on the BBC Sounds app.
Weather forecast for the F1 Australian GP
Current weather forecasts predict warm and dry conditions at Albert Park, with a gentle breeze and a very low chance of rain. The temperature is expected to be 18 degrees Celsius for the start of the race.
How many laps is the F1 Australian GP?
The race is scheduled to complete 58 laps at Albert Park, covering a total race distance of 306.124km.
F1 Australian GP starting grid
| Cla | Driver | Time | Gap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Max Verstappen |
 |
1'16.732 | |
| 2 |  George Russell |
 |
1'16.968 | 0.236 |
| 3 | Lewis Hamilton |
 |
1'17.104 | 0.372 |
| 4 |  Fernando Alonso |
 |
1'17.139 | 0.407 |
| 5 | Carlos Sainz |
 |
1'17.270 | 0.538 |
| 6 |  Lance Stroll |
 |
1'17.308 | 0.576 |
| 7 |  Charles Leclerc |
 |
1'17.369 | 0.637 |
| 8 |  Alex Albon |
 |
1'17.609 | 0.877 |
| 9 |  Pierre Gasly |
 |
1'17.675 | 0.943 |
| 10 |  Nico Hulkenberg |
 |
1'17.735 | 1.003 |
| 11 | Esteban Ocon |
 |
1'17.768 | 1.036 |
| 12 |  Yuki Tsunoda |
 |
1'18.099 | 1.367 |
| 13 | Lando Norris |
 |
1'18.119 | 1.387 |
| 14 |  Kevin Magnussen |
 |
1'18.129 | 1.397 |
| 15 | Nyck de Vries |
 |
1'18.335 | 1.603 |
| 16 |  Oscar Piastri |
 |
1'18.517 | 1.785 |
| 17 |  Zhou Guanyu |
 |
1'18.540 | 1.808 |
| 18 |  Logan Sargeant |
 |
1'18.557 | 1.825 |
| 19 |  Valtteri Bottas |
 |
1'18.714 | 1.982 |
| 20 |  Sergio Perez |
 |
||
| View full results | ||||
