2025 F1 season preview: What to look out for this year
12 March 2025Welcome to our 2025 F1 season preview. The season opener is finally here, and excitement is palpable in the paddock as F1 gears up for another year of top-drawer racing action.
With the Melbourne Grand Prix set to kick off the season, everyone is eager to see how the grid shapes up. Will Lewis Hamilton thrive in red? Might Lando Norris be in the mix for the title? Can Max Verstappen clinch a fifth consecutive championship? Here’s everything you need to watch out for as the 2025 Formula 1 season gets underway.
Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari debut
After 12 seasons with Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari at the start of 2024 was one of the biggest stories in F1 history, and we’ll soon find out if it was the right choice.
Strong pace in testing
The seven-time world champion showed promising pace in pre-season testing, and Ferrari ended 2024 as McLaren’s strongest competition. It seems a strong possibility then, that the Scuderia will be in the mix again this year, especially with its all-star driver line-up of Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
How will Hamilton stack up against Leclerc?
Charles Leclerc’s reputation of having immense pace over one lap makes him one of F1’s most respected competitors. If Hamilton is to fulfil his dream of fighting for that elusive eighth title in red, the ultra-quick Monegasque will be his first hurdle to overcome.
The Newey effect at Aston Martin
One of the other significant shifts in the F1 paddock for 2025 is Adrian Newey's switch to Aston Martin, with the legendary designer departing Red Bull to take on a new challenge in green.
Can he turn around Aston Martin’s form?
Aston has been on a downward trajectory since midway through the 2023 season, so it will fall to Newey to remedy that. Will his legendary design abilities be enough to turn the tide for Aston Martin this year? Only time will tell.
2025 car or 2026 regulations?
There is another prominent question looming over his appointment; will Aston opt to direct Newey’s focus onto this year’s challenger for short-term gain, or will his attentions be targeted at the seismic regulation overhaul coming in 2026?
Lando Norris’ title assault begins
Lando Norris went out on top with a dominant showing at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to close out the 2024 season, so surely he’s a favourite for this year’s Drivers’ Championship?
His best chance yet?
With McLaren as the reigning Constructors’ Champions, his 2024 rival Max Verstappen seeming to struggle in testing and Norris’ confidence at an all-time high, the stars seemed to have aligned for the Brit’s 2025 title aspirations.
READ MORE: Norris’ best chance yet
Ominous race runs
After its first Constructors’ title in 26 years, McLaren entered the 2025 season with a target on its back and pre-season testing did nothing to dispel that idea. Norris’ race pace was consistently a second a lap faster than comparable runs from Ferrari and Mercedes, so the team look to be in a strong position for the opening race in Australia.
Can Verstappen make it five in a row?
For the fourth time in his F1 career, Max Verstappen enters an F1 season as the reigning champion, but can he claim a fifth title in succession in 2025? That’s a feat only Michael Schumacher has achieved in the past…
The RB21 looked a handful in testing
Red Bull seemed to struggle in pre-season testing, with the handling issues that plagued their car at times last year looking to have carried over into the RB21. Luckily for Red Bull, Verstappen knows how to hustle a sub-par car to the title, as he did so astutely last year.
Russell vs Antonelli at Mercedes
As was highlighted in Season 7 of Drive to Survive, the spotlight is on George Russell this year as Mercedes enters its first campaign in 12 years without Lewis Hamilton in one of the silver arrows. The first races of 2025 will show if Russell is capable of stepping into his shoes and leading the team forward.
Grand Prix debut for Italian prodigy
Mercedes ushers in its new era with the promotion of Kimi Antonelli into its second car. The young Italian makes his debut in Melbourne, but will he be able to translate his raw pace into consistent results, and will it be enough to measure up against a proven race winner in Russell?
How will Sainz fare at Williams?
After being let go by Ferrari to make way for the incoming Hamilton, Carlos Sainz found a new home at Williams in 2025, and early indications suggest a promising season ahead for the Grove-based outfit.
Promising times in Bahrain
In pre-season testing, the team looked to have made significant strides from its underwhelming 2024 car, with the Spaniard setting the fastest time across all three days.
READ MORE: 2025 F1 pre-season testing results
Who will be stronger, Sainz or Albon?
His main benchmark, as is always the case in F1, will be his team-mate Alex Albon, who has established himself as a top midfield performer in recent years with the team. In theory, the pairing should be closely matched and drawing comparisons between them will undoubtedly keep fans and pundits busy this year.
Oliver Bearman’s first full season
After stunning the paddock with standout performances in Jeddah and Baku last season, Oliver Bearman enters his first full F1 campaign with Haas.
Where are Haas in the pecking order?
The young Brit’s speed was confirmed by those races last year, but how Haas has prepared for 2025 will determine how his season plays out. Bearman was slowest of all 20 drivers in testing and team-mate Ocon didn’t fare much better, so there may be some work to do in Banbury to get the team back to the top of the midfield where they ended 2024.
2025 F1 team predictions: another competitive year?
The 2024 F1 season was one of the most competitive in recent memory, with Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari, and McLaren going head-to-head throughout the year in a real clash of the titans.
More dramatic performance swings?
The battle for the 2024 Constructors’ Championship went down to the wire, and with different teams excelling at different circuits, the unpredictability kept fans on the edge of their seats.
Will the 2025 season offer more of the same, or will one team pull ahead? The development race is always a factor as the season progresses so a performance swing like McLaren’s in 2024 is possible, but most teams will have one eye on the 2026 regulations.
Rookies looking to impress
A fresh crop of young talent joins the 2025 Formula 1 grid, some of whom got behind the wheel in selected races last year. Each of them will be eager to prove their worth:
- Gabriel Bortoleto – The reigning Formula 2 champion joins Sauber having followed in the footsteps of Russell, Leclerc, and Oscar Piastri by taking back-to-back F3 and F2 titles in their rookie seasons. Good company, indeed.
- Isack Hadjar – Runner-up to Bortoleto in the 2024 Formula 2 Championship, Hadjar will drive for RB and will be looking to make an immediate impression with the senior Red Bull team.
- Jack Doohan – After a year on the sidelines as Alpine’s reserve driver and a guest appearance in the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Doohan finally gets his chance to shine with a full-time race seat.
- Oliver Bearman – The 2024 super sub is now a full-time F1 driver with Haas and will be keen to continue his impressive performances.
- Kimi Antonelli – The young Italian struggled for consistency in Formula 2, but his raw talent is undeniable. Will he absorb the pressure of being in a top team so early in his career?
