The 2025 Formula One season promises to be an earth-shattering series of races, with the battle at the top revolving around the sport's current holy trinity: Red Bull, Ferrari, and McLaren. With just under a week to go before the lights go out in Melbourne, excitement is at an all-time high.
Both Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton will be looking to secure another title and etch their names in history, while Lando Norris, in the McLaren, will try to throw a spanner in the works and claim his first World Championship.
Zak Brown’s McLaren won the constructors' championship last year with their Papaya lightning bolt, which also saw Norris secure his first GP victory in Miami. Norris won four races last season, while his teammate Oscar Piastri also claimed his maiden GP victory in Hungary controversially, before securing a second win in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The ever-smiling Norris will need to show grit this season if he hopes to become champion, but he remains confident in his approach.
“I’m good enough to do it as I am,” Norris said, dismissing the notion that he needs to be more aggressive to win.
Brown has predicted an even tighter battle in the 2025 season, with many midfield teams expected to rise.
"I see the top four teams being just as close as they were at the end of last year … When you see the turnaround we had, there's no reason why other teams can't have that type of improvement," Brown said at a press conference.
"I think we're in for an epic season ... I think we're going to have an unbelievable three-or-four-way driver championship, with four teams fighting for the Constructors' title. I think that's possible.”
Verstappen, who is expected to maintain his usual aggressive approach, will aim to equal Michael Schumacher’s record this year by winning a fifth consecutive World Championship with Red Bull.
Last season, his friendship with Norris soured after the two collided during the Austrian GP. Battling for the lead in the closing laps, Norris attempted an overtake at Turn 3, but both cars made contact, resulting in punctures for both drivers. Officials deemed Verstappen at fault and handed him a 10-second penalty.
The 27-year-old will be joined this season by Australian rookie Liam Lawson. Despite Red Bull’s struggles with the RB20 last year, Verstappen showcased his driving prowess to secure the title in a car that Christian Horner’s team couldn’t get to 100%.
“This year, we've got a new lineup, with Max joined by our young Kiwi, Liam Lawson. Liam brings a very exciting new dynamic to the team, and we look forward to racing against some amazing competition this year in what is going to be a very close World Championship,” Horner said.
Meanwhile, Ferrari looks to solidify its status in Formula 1 after snatching Mercedes-AMG star Lewis Hamilton.
Hamilton’s final seasons under Toto Wolff were underwhelming, plagued by car performance issues. His decision to leave Mercedes was, to some extent, driven by a loss of faith in Wolff’s leadership, which ultimately left them racing a weaker car compared to their top rivals.
Mercedes' trackside engineering director, Andrew Shovlin, admitted last season’s inconsistent performance stemmed from delays in development due to a “rough start.”
"The fact is, on average, over a season, we've not been quick enough. When we delivered an update, we had a few races where we were competitive, but then other teams brought their own updates and moved ahead again," Shovlin said.
"I think the start of the season was poor. The car wasn’t well-balanced and didn’t perform consistently across different tracks."
Hamilton will join Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc and the rest of the Tifosi in hopes of securing his eighth world title, which would make him the most successful driver in the sport’s history. It is also poetic that Hamilton has chosen to attempt this feat with Ferrari, a team widely regarded as the greatest in Formula 1 history.
Meanwhile, Wolff has placed his faith in 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli, who will join George Russell at Mercedes. Russell, who has yet to truly prove himself as a leading driver in Formula 1, will need to step up if he hopes to guide Mercedes to even half the success they enjoyed during the Hamilton years.
Mercedes will need to pull a rabbit out of a hat this season if they hope to climb out of fourth place and challenge for another title.