Ollie Bearman lauds Arvid Lindblad for ‘mega job’ on his F1 debut at the Australian Grand Prix

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Arvid Lindblad produced a brilliant debut weekend in Formula 1 at the Australian Grand Prix as he came home to score points.

The 18-year-old Brit came into 2026 under pressure, given that he would have to adapt to a new regulations cycle. Fernando Alonso felt Lindblad might struggle being a rookie, but that did not prove the case at all in Melbourne.

The Racing Bulls driver made it to Q3 at the first attempt and qualified ninth behind teammate Liam Lawson. On Sunday, Lindblad enjoyed a mega start off the line and was running as high as third at one stage, but fell back to eighth behind Ollie Bearman.

Some standout performers in Melbourne 👀 Who was you Driver of the Day at the Australian GP?

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Martin Brundle praised Lindblad for resisting Max Verstappen during the Australian Grand Prix. The four-time champion would get past the rookie, but the Brit put up a fight against the Red Bull driver.

Verstappen helped Lindblad by giving him advice before his F1 debut. It seemed to pay off as he did not look out of place at all on the track.

Ollie Bearman heaps praise on Arvid Lindblad for ‘mega job’ at Australian Grand Prix

Lindblad fought well throughout the Australian GP to score four points on debut. He kept himself out of trouble and had some strong battles on the track, most notably with Bearman.

The two British talents scrapped for position multiple times, but it was the Haas driver who won out in the end, finishing a strong P7. After the race, Bearman lauded Lindblad’s performance via his Instagram account.

Posting after the Australian GP, he wrote: “Got the max we could out of that one in the end after a tricky start! perfect way to begin the season.

“Proud of this team and all their work and mega job @arvid.lindblad.” The Racing Bulls driver responded with a fist bump emoji in the comments.

READ MORE: Who is 2026 Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad? Everything you need to know

Ollie Bearman praises Arvid Lindblad’s ‘excellent’ defence in Melbourne

Speaking on F1’s Post Race Show after the Australian GP, Bearman discussed his race and his battle with Lindblad further.

“Luckily, to be honest, there was a second VSC and we managed to benefit from that,” said the Haas driver. “But we’d overcut basically all of the other cars who had boxed on the first one, and then it was basically a clean run to the line.

“I just had to fight with Arvid, who did an excellent job defending, and he had, I think, extra battery power hidden somewhere in his car! But it was very fun nonetheless.”

Describe Arvid Lindblad’s F1 debut in one word… GO! 👇

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Asked what he was thinking during the battle, he replied: “Don’t crash basically. You have no grip in the straights anymore because of this straight line mode. So, you can’t really do any erratic moves. You have to be careful.

“But then, obviously, I used all of my battery in turn one. So, then he overtook me in turn three like I was standing still, and then into turn six, I’m like lifting off, just praying that I can recharge the battery for turn nine. We were side by side again into turn nine.”