While other rookies and teams struggled in rainy Melbourne, Mercedes and their youngster emerged tied atop the standings.

Antonelli is youngest to score points in debut, tallies best result in a debut since Kevin Magnussen at the 2014 Australian GP.

Mercedes made the call to replace Lewis Hamilton with young phenom Andrea Kimi Antonelli, and the 18-year-old dazzled in his debut, finishing fourth in challenging conditions after starting in P16. For a moment it looked as if Antonelli would be demoted to fifth due to a five-second penalty that was assessed for an unsafe release,