Ten rounds into the 2025 Formula 1 season there are many talking points, several plot twists, and even more.
In pre-season testing it was already evident that McLaren had stolen a march on the rest of the field. Although the Woking-based team had brilliantly won the Constructor’s championship title at the end of 2024 there was every expectation that Red Bull and even Ferrari would mount a serious challenge. As it were, Red Bull didn’t maintain their dominance with Max Verstappen and Ferrari went significantly backwards from where they ended in Abu Dhabi.
Let’s talk about McLaren first. The team has had a storming start to the seven with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris taking seven of the ten wins so far. The lead in the constructor’s table, 175 points over Mercedes, is sizeable. The McLaren drivers too are currently one and two on in the driver’s championship. It is a mightily impressive feat that McLaren has not only achieved but maintained. The turnaround in the team’s performance is a true testament to the incredibly hard work of everyone involved. And even a rival team fan would have to doff their cap to this kind of achievement.
But with being the class of the field comes extra headaches. The clash between Norris and Piastri in Canada was inevitable, given how close they have been this season. Norris immediately took responsibility and apologized for his rash move. This is a great sign for Andrea Stella (team principal), Zak Brown (CEO), and co. There seems to be, genuinely, little to no animosity between the two drivers and an acceptance that one may perform better than the other on a given day. It remains to be seen how the plays out the more urgent the championship battle becomes. So far, so good.
The lone star for Red Bull remains Max Verstappen. Though he has performed near miracles in the car, see Japan and Spain, the fact remains that the constructor’s title is not something that will be coming back to Red Bull in 2025. The season started with Liam Lawson behind the wheel but after truly dismal performances he was quickly replaced
with Yuki Tsunoda. It didn’t get any better. The Japanese driver has slogged his way through quali and races without anything to shout about. In fact, he’s qualified dead last, more than once. It puts quite a bit into perspective too. Especially the performances of Checo Perez. Perhaps those who so quickly and readily crucified him might have a bit of different perspective now. Red Bull are in quite a spot too. Because it seems that no one can cope with the characteristics of the car besides Verstappen. If the Dutchman were to leave the team, which is the ever-persistent rumour, it’s difficult to imagine could come in and deliver the same type of results.
Ferrari’s expectations of a being a challenger in 2025 has simply faded into it being a challenging season. Though Charles Leclerc seems able to drag a result out of the car it isn’t quite the same on the other side of the garage. Except for the Sprint win in China there has been nothing to cheer about from Lewis Hamilton. The 7-time champion seems discouraged and frankly puzzled. After ten races he sits on only 79 points, a far cry from the Mercedes hey-day.
Speaking of Mercedes. The team seems to be heading in the right direction, and they have quite a driver at the helm too. George Russell has been as solid as anything and delivered some stunning drivers, not least of all the last race. Russell has stepped into the role team leader beautifully and appears to have the best interest of his rookie teammate at heart. Kimi Antonelli’s F1 career is only ten races old but he’s been impressive so far. Good races coupled with few mistakes and a first-ever podium in Canada is painting a very good picture of the 18-year-old.
There are still fourteen races remaining in 2025 and by the time we hit Abu Dhabi the picture could look completely different. McLaren appear to be dominant, but their performance edge isn’t insurmountable. And Max Verstappen is keeping himself well within the frame for the driver’s title. And then there is Ferrari. Can the famed Italian mark find some way to turn their form around?
