McLaren's Lando Norris had a late scare but eventually held off the advances of the marauding Max Verstappen to win the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday in Melbourne.

Norris was forced to fend off a late threat from Verstappen, brought back into contention by a late safety car, but held on to take his fifth career victory.

Mercedes' George Russell managed third place with Alex Albon from the Williams team fourth.

Lewis Hamilton finished 10th on a difficult day for Ferrari with his teammate Charles Leclerc ending up ninth. Six cars did not finish the race which was overwhelmed by wet conditions.

Seven-time champion Hamilton was leading on lap 46 but only because Ferrari had made the wrong decision to stay out on dry-weather slick tyres as a heavy shower hit the track.

He and team-mate Charles Leclerc then had to pit as a safety car was sent out for the final time following a series of crashes and dropped to the bottom of the top 10.

It was a race filled with incidents caused specifically by the wet weather that showered down in Melbourne Sunday afternoon. Two new drivers Issck Hadjar and Jack Doohan both had incidences within the first minutes, as did Carlos Sainz, necessitating restarts.

The race finally begun and despite pressure, Norris held off Verstappen at the first turn and from then on, he was untouchable. He spoke to Sky Sports after the race and offered his insight on a first win of the season.

“It was amazing, it was a tough race, especially with Max (Verstappen) behind me, I was pushing especially the last two laps which was a little bit stressful but an amazing way to start the year, he said.

Verstappen his part is okay with second place as they build into the season.

"This is where I expected to be, In the first stint we were lacking a bit of pace to the McLaren. It is 18 points more than I had here last year, so I'll take that," he told Sky Sport.

Race Leaderboard

1. Lando Norris (McLaren)

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

3. George Russell (Mercedes)

4. Alex Albon (Williams)

5. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

6. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

7. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)

8. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

9. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

10. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

11. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

12. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)

13. Esteban Ocon (Haas)

14. Oliver Bearman (Haas)

DNF. Liam Lawson (Red Bull)

DNF. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)

DNF. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)

DNF. Carlos Sainz (Williams)

DNF. Jack Doohan (Alpine)

DNF. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)

Driver's Championships Points

According to the BBC, this is the first time in more than 1,000 days a driver other than Red Bull's Max Verstappen has led the drivers' championship.

1. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 25 pts

2, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 18

3. George Russell (Mercedes) 15

4. Alex Albon (Williams) - 12

5. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) - 10

6. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) - 8

7. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber) - 6

8. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 4

9. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) - 2

10. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) - 1