George Russell took a comfortable victory in the Australian Grand Prix at the start of a new era of Formula 1 after a brief early scrap with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.
Russell and Leclerc staged a close fight for the first 10 laps with frequent lead changes before Ferrari's decision to stay out during a virtual safety car period took them out of contention for the win.
The Briton led home team-mate Kimi Antonelli while Leclerc had to be satisfied with the final podium position ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
McLaren's world champion Lando Norris finished fifth, fending off a challenge in the closing laps from Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who recovered from 20th on the grid to finish sixth.
Norris' team-mate Oscar Piastri crashed on his way to the grid of his home race, losing control over a kerb and spinning into the wall.
Arvid Lindblad, 18, became the youngest Briton to race in F1 and impressed on his debut to take eighth behind countryman Oliver Bearman in the Haas.
Russell's pole position - 0.8 seconds clear of the fastest non-Mercedes car - had sent shockwaves through the paddock on Saturday but the race was initially much closer than qualifying.
Both Ferrari drivers made their expected electric starts, and Leclerc vaulted from fourth on the grid to take the lead at the first corner.
Russell powered past the Ferrari on lap two between Turns 10 and 11 by using extra electrical energy.
But Leclerc was not to go down without a fight and drove past the Mercedes in a similar fashion on the run to Turn Nine on lap three.
Russell tracked Leclerc closely, challenging him into Turn One on lap nine only for the Ferrari driver to fend him off and leave Russell to fight to retain his position from Hamilton, who made it a three-car train in the lead.