Will the battle for the 2025 Formula 1 championship be an all-papaya affair? Oscar Piastri heads the table with 234 points, having won five of the 12 grands prix so far this season but McLaren team-mate Lando Norris is closing the gap after two victories in a row, and sits eight points behind thanks to a consistent run of results: he’s only been off the podium at one race this year, and has stood on the top step four times.
But Max Verstappen‘s bid to defend the title has faltered after a series of disasters. He spun at the British Grand Prix and tumbled down the running order, which shortly after a Spanish Grand Prix where, frustrated at a team order to let George Russell past, he rammed the Mercedes driver and was handed a penalty that dropped him to tenth at the finish line. He’s now 69 points — almost three grand prix wins — behind Piastri, with no sign of McLaren’s dominance coming to an end.
Time appears to be running out for others to bridge the gap. Russell sits fourth in the table with 147 points and a 87-point deficit to Piastri, who has almost twice the number of points as the lead Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc.who sits fifth in the standings. That’s despite despite glimmers of form for the Scuderia, including Lewis Hamilton‘s win in the Chinese Grand Prix sprint and a recent upsurge in pace.
Behind them, we are seeing a resurgence in form at Williams and Racing Bulls; the emergence of impressive talent among the F1 rookies; and continuing struggles at Red Bull to find a team-mate who can match Verstappen, with Liam Lawson being dropped to Racing Bulls in a swap with Yuki Tsunoda two races into the season.
At least he’s still on the grid: After starting the season for Alpine, Jack Doohan is now sitting on the sidelines, having been replaced by Franco Colapinto.
With 12 races gone in the 2025 season, we look to have a proper championship battle developing and an almighty midfield scrap. Will it be a true classic?
