Bottas Wins 2019 Australian Grand Prix, Claims Fastest Lap Point

Mercedes-AMG Petronas' Valtteri Bottas bagged the top spot on the opening round of the 2019 Formula 1 season in Australia ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton.

The Mercedes-AMG Petronas team finished on top of the podium in style, dominating the 2019 Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne's Albert Park circuit with a one-two position it held since the qualifying round.

Bottas also took the cake by claiming the bonus point for the fastest lap, clocking lap 57 at 1:25.580 in a heated run with Red Bull-Honda's Max Verstappen.

Bottas said that it was his "best race ever."

"It was definitely my best race ever. I don't know what happened. I felt so good and everything was under control. The car was so good today. So truly enjoyable," he said.

He also said that he was keen on bagging the fastest lap.

"As I had really strong pace I wanted to go for that in the end and it's always a bit risky with worn tyres but it was worth it. I'm just so happy and I can't wait for the next race," he exclaimed.

For his part, Hamilton shared Bottas' elation on the victory.

"It's been a good weekend for the team, so I have to be happy for everyone and a really fantastic job from everyone. Valtteri drove an incredible race today, so he truly deserved it. We've just got some work to do. Still, it's a great, great start to the year, more than we could have hoped as a team," Hamilton said.

Meanwhile, Verstappen gave Red Bull-Honda a good start to the season by finishing in third place.