Is Verstappen out of F1 title race? - What to look for at the British GP

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As F1 returns to Silverstone, Max Verstappen is slipping out of contention, Lando Norris is chasing a dream home win, and the midfield battle is tighter than ever

Max Verstappens climbs out of his Red Bull-Honda after the first lap crash during the 2025 Austrian Grand Prix

Knocked out of the Austrian Grand Prix, Verstappen will need a historic comeback to retain the championship

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Formula 1 heads to Silverstone with the championship narrative shifting. Max Verstappen‘s retirement in Austria has left the reigning champion 61 points behind Oscar Piastri – a gap that may be too great even for him to overturn, especially in a Red Bull that’s now trailing McLaren on pace.

McLaren arrives as the team to beat once again, with Lando Norris looking to convert his home advantage into a maiden British Grand Prix victory. Having finished on the podium at Silverstone in the past two years, and now just 15 points off the championship lead, the momentum is firmly with the Briton.

Ferrari, buoyed by a much-needed resurgence at the Red Bull Ring, hopes to confirm its progress with another strong result, while Sauber continues its impressive rise into midfield leadership with a fresh upgrade. Williams, meanwhile, returns home under pressure, desperate to recover from a disastrous Austria and a worrying run of form.

 

Is Verstappen still a championship contender?

His Austrian GP retirement, added to the results of previous races – left Verstappen facing the reality that he is no longer realistically in the championship fight.

Max Verstappen at the Austrian GP

Verstappen’s chances of retaining the title are very small now

Red Bull

The 61-point deficit to Piastri after the Red Bull Ring race means Verstappen would need to pull off one of the biggest comebacks in history if he were to retain the crown to secure his fifth consecutive title.

The gap is significantly larger than the 46-point one Verstappen himself overcame in 2022, which is the modern record for a successful comeback, and even then, he had 19 races to go to recover.

Adjusting the gap to the current points system, only James Hunt’s comeback in 1976 is comparable, and that required Niki Lauda to miss races after his accident.

Granted, there are 13 races left in 2025, which back in 1976 was almost the entire season. There were also no sprint races back then.

So technically, Verstappen’s task is not impossible, given there are still an enormous number of races left.

Statistics aside, the biggest issue Verstappen is facing is a car that is no match for the McLaren, again the favourite going into the British Grand Prix.

With Piastri and Norris consistently fighting for victories, they might steal some points from each other and help Verstappen’s cause, but that won’t be of any use if the world champion keeps finishing behind the McLaren duo.

In the absence of extraordinary circumstances, the reality is that Verstappen can’t realistically be thinking of retaining the title anymore.

 

Will Norris live up to the favourite tag?

After his Canadian GP mistake, Norris bounced back with the perfect response with a pretty much flawless display in Austria to kick off a vital triple-header in the best possible way.

McLaren-Mercedes driver Lando Norris sprays the champagne on the podium after the 2025 Austrian Grand Prix

Norris has to be favourite for Silverstone

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The McLaren driver is now again just 15 points behind Piastri and has to be seen as favourite to score his first victory in front of his home crowd.

Norris has a strong record at Silverstone in previous years, having finished second in 2023 and third in 2024. He missed out on last year’s win because of strategy and late-race tyre choices.

The British driver is feeling more confident in the car thanks to the upgrade that has improved the front end of the McLaren, and said he’s not feeling any negative pressure from racing at home with the favourite tag.

“It probably distracts me in a good way more than anything, more of a positive distraction, I would say, more than a pressure,” Norris said after Austria.

All the ingredients are there for Norris to keep his momentum going and take the biggest piece of silverware home in front of the British crowd.

 

Is Ferrari’s progress real?

Ferrari enjoyed one of its most competitive weekends at the Red Bull Ring, emerging — in Verstappen’s absence from the race — as the second-fastest team behind McLaren.

Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) during qualifying for the 2025 Austrian Grand Prix

Ferrari’s updates appeared to work in Austria

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Its strong weekend was down to a combination of factors, not all of them down to the team itself, like Verstappen’s early retirement or Mercedes‘ struggles, but a good execution of the race and an upgrade that appeared to help was also part of it.

Ferrari’s focus on a new floor, front wing, and suspension geometry helped deliver a more consistent performance, and the Scuderia will be hoping to confirm that at Silverstone.

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A new suspension is set to be introduced at either Silverstone this weekend or Spa the following weekend, and that should bring another boost in performance.

Ferrari has been weaker in qualifying than in races this year, so its Red Bull Ring results — Charles Leclerc second on the grid and Lewis Hamilton fourth — are also a sign of progress.

However, it’s not all good news, as not all the issues have been solved, with tyre degradation and a car that’s too sensitive to set-up changes still something Ferrari is working on.

Given the nature of the circuit, Silverstone is the perfect opportunity for Ferrari to confirm that its progress is genuine.

 

Can Williams bounce back?

Williams’ fall from grace over the past four races has been almost shocking to see after its incredible start to the season, in which he was comfortably ahead of the midfield pack and even mixing it up with the likes of Ferrari.

Carlos Sainz is seen in the pits during the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix

Sainz’s weekend ended up in flames in Austria

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Since Imola, the team from Grove has scored just four points, including two non-scores in Spain and Austria, the latter in the form of a double DNF and a nightmare weekend for Carlos Sainz, who couldn’t even take the start.

Williams is one of the teams that decided to stop development on its 2025 car early and focus on next year, a move that was always going to mean sacrificing results later on.

However, the slump has come much faster than expected, particularly as rivals have continued to improve. It might end up paying off in 2026 but, at the moment, Williams is looking like a struggler more than a challenger.

Without upgrades to fix its problems or improve its pace, the remainder of 2025 might be tricky for the team if its recent form is an actual reflection of its performance level.

Still, Silverstone should be more positive for Williams because, after all, how can it not be after the Austria disaster?

 

Is Sauber the new midfield leader?

As Williams has gone backwards, Sauber has emerged as one of the leading contenders in the midfield since it took a massive step forward thanks to its Spanish GP upgrades.

Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber-Ferrari) during the 2025 Austrian Grand Prix

Sauber has even outscored Red Bull recently

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From being at the bottom of the grid all season, Sauber suddenly became a contender, with Nico Hülkenberg even beating a Ferrari on merit at Barcelona.

The team has now finished in the points in all the last three races, and has outscored not only all of its direct rivals, but also Red Bull.

At this rate, even Williams’ fifth place could be under threat if Sauber manages to keep this sort of performance.

The double-points finish in Austria allows Sauber to arrive at Silverstone with real momentum and the potential to shine again and potentially embarrass some of its British rivals like Williams or Aston Martin at home.

The Hinwil-based squad will have yet another upgrade package at its disposal in Britain, so it could again be a team to watch out for this weekend.

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