After the 2025 season got off to a nail-biting start, we take a look back at the equally exciting 2009 Australian Grand Prix.
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Formula One in Australia
The Australian Grand Prix has existed since 1928, but it became part of the Formula One World Championship in 1985. Back then, it was held at the Adelaide Street Circuit, which became known as a demanding and tricky circuit. The last race held in Adelaide took place in 1995. In 1996, the Australian Grand Prix moved to Melbourne. Despite initial protests from local residents, it has been the home of Formula One in Australia ever since.
There have been 19 Formula One drivers from Australia. Out of those, 16 have taken part in at least one race since the championship began in 1950, whilst three failed to qualify. In 2025, Oscar Piastri is back in his McLaren, having just signed a multi-year contract with the team. Joining him on the grid and racing for Alpine is Formula One rookie, Jack Doohan (whose father just so happens to be MotoGP legend, Mick Doohan).
Rewind to 2009 and it was Mark Webber representing Australia on the Formula One grid. Webber retired from Formula One in 2013, after a healthy 14 years that saw him go from test driver with Arrows to driving in a team that would win four constructor’s titles by the end of his career.
2009 Australian Grand Prix
At the start of the 2009 season, a new team had emerged from the ashes of the former Honda Racing F1 Team. Honda announced their withdrawal from Formula One at the end of 2008 due to the global financial crisis. Half of their 700-strong team had already been made redundant by the time the announcement hit the headlines. Ross Brawn, who had been working as the technical director at Honda Racing F1, bought the team for a grand total of £1. Reborn as Brawn GP, they made their Formula One Grand Prix debut on the sun-soaked asphalt of the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne, Australia.
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Lights Out And Away We Go
Both Brawns had managed to lock out the front row in qualifying at the 2009 Australian Grand Prix. As the race got underway, Jenson Button charged to the first corner retaining his pole position. Chasing him were Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Felipe Massa, Robert Kubica and Kimi Räikkönen. Behind them, a chaotic chain reaction began.
Reubens Barrichello had gotten off to a poor start after almost stalling, dropping quickly from second on the grid to ninth. Barrichello tried to get up the inside of home hero Mark Webber, but managed to collide with the Red Bull. This in turn half-spun Webber into the sidepod of Nick Heidfeld, and then into the front left of Heikki Kovalainen. Ahead, Massa tried to sneak past Rosberg, forcing the German off the track and falling behind a relatively unscathed Barrichello. Meanwhile, Button quickly began to break away from the pack, with a healthy four second lead by lap six.
Middle Stint
Lap 16 saw both Vettel and Rosberg pit for new tyres. Whilst Vettel managed to hang on to second place, Rosberg dropped to 12th after a slow left front tyre change. Further up the road and now running in fourth place, Kazuki Nakajima ran wide on Turn 4. In an attempt to correct this, the Japanese driver put too much power down and ended up spinning his Williams just before Turn 5. The Williams hit the wall, causing the front wing to break off and end up directly on the racing line in the middle of the track. Button dashed into the pits, and one lap later the Safety Car was deployed. The pack filtered past until the Safety Car picked up race leader Button, and it continued to control the pace until lap 24.
At the restart, Button again held on to first place, keeping ahead of Vettel, Massa, Kubica and Räikkönen. Nelson Piquet Jr. tried to make a move on sixth-place Rosberg, but lost control of his car in the braking zone and spun into the gravel, ending his race. Proceedings were somewhat more settled for the next 23 laps. There were very few incidents, aside from a spin from Räikkönen and suspension damage forcing Massa to slowly limp out of the race. Button came in for his final pit stop on lap 47. It was slow, lasting 13.2 seconds due to an issue with the left rear wheel.
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Closing Stages And Post-Race Drama
On Lap 55, chaos once again reigned supreme. Vettel made a small mistake going into the first corner. This opened the door for Kubica to make a move down the outside towards Turn 3. With Vettel breaking early, Kubica was ahead as they turned in. Despite this, Vettel turned in and found his Red Bull’s front wing locked onto the sidepod of the BMW Sauber.
The collision caused both drivers to lose their front wings, but they continued to battle to the next two corners. Kubica had managed to stay ahead, but understeered off the track, hitting the wall and ending his race. Vettel also slid into the wall as he went into the corner, with his Red Bull’s front left tyre bending back in on itself. Determined to keep hold of his points-paying position, the German driver carried on. However, he ended up coming to a stop between Turns 10 and 11.
The Safety Car came out once more. The debris cleanup was a lengthy task that wasn’t completed in time for the end of the race. The 2009 Australian Grand Prix became the second ever Formula 1 race to finish under Safety Car conditions. This played perfectly into Brawn’s hands, with Button taking the chequered flag ahead of Barichello for the 1-2. Jarno Trulli came across the line in third place. This was later snatched away by the stewards after they imposed a 25-second penalty for passing Hamilton under the Safety Car. In a shocking turn of events, this decision was later reversed. Trulli was given back his third-place finish, whilst Hamilton was disqualified for misleading the stewards during their investigation.
Summary
Despite the drama with the stewards, all eyes were firmly on Brawn GP. The underdog team (that nobody thought would pose any sort of challenge) was suddenly the focus of the entire paddock’s attention, and it was just the first step in what ended up being the perfect season for the eventual World Champions.
Bonus recommendation: If you haven’t checked out “Brawn: The Impossible Formula 1 Story” yet, it’s a brilliant documentary that’s well worth a watch! You can check out our review here.
Which Australian Grand Prix do you think is a race to remember? Let us know in the comments!