Just a yr in the past, earlier than the 2024 Formula One season began, there was a sense of trepidation about the place the sport was heading. Red Bull had come off a sensational season, successful 21 of 22 races, and fears of one staff dominating F1 for the foreseeable future felt very actual.
However, issues modified dramatically in the area of six months. Although Max Verstappen nonetheless managed to clinch his fourth straight drivers’ crown, he was made to work laborious for it. McLaren grew to become a pressure to reckon with, displacing Red Bull from its perch, and claimed the constructors’ title for the first time since 1998.
As a outcome, the 2025 season has sparked a lot of pleasure. It is a landmark yr for the most prestigious motor-racing sequence on the planet — the seventy fifth anniversary of the championship, which began in 1950 with the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Ahead of this weekend’s season-opener in Melbourne, The Hindu appears to be like at some key plotlines that would outline the yr.
Will this be the finish of Max’s period?
Last yr, when Verstappen received seven of the first 10 races, he would hardly have foreseen the want to mine each final reserve of his expertise to seal his fourth title. The Red Bull was a tough automotive and wanted somebody of Verstappen’s calibre to extract efficiency from it.
Champion and challenger: Max Verstappen had to dig deep for his fourth consecutive drivers’ crown in 2024 whereas Lando Norris proved he could possibly be a contender in a top-end automotive. With McLaren trying strongest in pre-season testing, this could possibly be Norris’ yr. | Photo credit score: Getty Images
As lengthy as it loved a important benefit over its rivals, the inherent weak point in the equipment was manageable. But as soon as the others — primarily McLaren — stepped up, Red Bull stood uncovered. And after McLaren grew to become the front-runner, Lando Norris started to make it one thing of a title battle even as Verstappen’s frustration grew.
Parting methods with technical wizard Adrian Newey, the architect of Red Bull’s success since becoming a member of the outfit in 2006, made the season trickier for the staff. Newey has since revealed that the engineering group failed to heed his warnings about the weak point in the automotive. The design genius was an vital purpose Verstappen had signed a long-term deal till 2028.
This yr will probably be an acid check for the outfit. Can it produce a race-winning product with out Newey at the helm? More to the level, this yr’s improvement curve will probably be a sign of whether or not Red Bull is prepared for the important guidelines shake-up subsequent yr. If the technical division doesn’t get its act collectively, the staff may threat dropping its star driver.
Does Norris have what it takes?
While Verstappen emerged triumphant in 2024, runner-up Norris did his repute a lot of good. Once McLaren gave him a top-end automotive, he produced eye-catching performances. He received 4 races, stepped onto the podium on 9 different events and was instrumental in his squad clinching the constructors’ title.
There had been, nonetheless, chinks in his armour that stopped him from ever changing into a critical contender. Norris was particularly spectacular in qualifying, taking eight poles, proof of his outright pace. But his failure to convert them, typically fluffing the begins, held him again.
Crucially, in wheel-to-wheel battles, particularly in opposition to Verstappen, Norris was typically second finest. The 25-year-old later admitted that he wanted to get his elbows out. He additionally had a few off-weekends when he was nonetheless in the title image, his inexperience exhibiting.
Sifting by means of pre-season testing instances, it seems as although McLaren will begin favorite, after executing a easy programme over three days in Bahrain. This yr may simply be Norris’ golden likelihood to go one higher.
The risk inside McLaren
Having two top-drivers in a staff in a championship battle may be a recipe for catastrophe. Norris will probably be acutely conscious of this even as he retains an eye fixed on his teammate throughout the storage. For, Oscar Piastri has already exhibited indicators of being one to watch out for. In his sophomore season final yr, the Australian received two races, considerably bettering his tyre-management expertise.
Red shift: Lewis Hamilton’s change to Ferrari is the defining transfer in F1 this century. It will probably be fascinating to see how the seven-time world champion performs, particularly if the Prancing Horse builds on its progress final yr. | Photo credit score: Getty Images
He was additionally sharp in on-track battles, his finest second an audacious first-lap transfer on Norris in Monza. If Piastri can present the similar degree of enchancment as final yr — and there actually is room for it in his qualifying performances — the intra-team battle will get very fascinating. McLaren prolonged Piastri’s contract this week, a vote of confidence in the 23-year-old’s skills. The final thing Norris would need is his colleague taking factors off him.
Hamilton’s scarlet change
Lewis Hamilton’s change to Ferrari is the defining transfer in F1 this century. The most embellished driver becoming a member of the most illustrious staff is a dream match-up. The expectations are sky excessive as he chases a document eighth drivers’ crown.
But, at the similar time, the British driver has been removed from his finest over the previous couple of years at Mercedes. Since the ground-effect automobiles got here into being in 2022, the Mercedes, with its very slender working window, has not been to Hamilton’s liking.
Although he received two races final yr, it was evident that he didn’t have the outright tempo his teammate George Russell did. Hamilton, who even admitted he was in all probability not as quick as he was in his prime, is moving into a Ferrari constructed round Charles Leclerc.
The 27-year-old Monegasque was by far the second-best driver on the grid final yr behind Verstappen and is at the peak of his recreation. At 40, Hamilton doesn’t have a lot time left in the sport and desires to hit the floor working if he harbours any hope of getting again to the prime.
The early rounds will present the place Hamilton stands relative to Leclerc, at present thought of the quickest driver over a lap. If the seven-time champion is inside a few tenths of his teammate in qualifying, he’ll again himself to make it up in the races. Much relies upon, nonetheless, on whether or not the Prancing Horse can construct on its progress final yr. It completed strongly, however some of its energy was circuit-specific. It stays to be seen whether or not the Ferrari may be at the sharp-end in any respect the tracks this yr.
Stick or twist: the developmental conundrum
2025 will probably be the final yr of the present technical regime. Next yr, F1 could have new aero and engine laws that embrace lively aerodynamics and sustainable fuels.
The yr earlier than a important guidelines shake-up is at all times the hardest for the groups. They want to develop the automotive for the ongoing season with out compromising the preparation for the following yr, which requires substantial sources.
It will probably be doubly troublesome for the groups preventing for glory. Do they fight to win when they’re aggressive and threat falling behind in 2026, or surrender a chance now by playing on getting it proper subsequent yr?
At the similar time, a new guidelines cycle additionally resets the established order and offers a chance for groups down the grid to surrender a yr and deal with their subsequent marketing campaign. The stakes concerned in the decision-making will heighten each the thrill of this season and the anticipation of the subsequent.
Published – March 15, 2025 12:14 am IST
