Formula 1’s 2025 season resumes this weekend after its summer recess with 10 grands prix left before the new era in 2026 gets underway. There’s a lot still left to settle, so here’s 10 things to watch for as Formula 1 gears up for a return to racing in the Netherlands.
Oscar or Lando?
And does it stay fair?
Barring an improbable turnaround from Red Bull and Max Verstappen, Formula 1 will have a new World Champion this year, with McLaren pair Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris separated by just nine points at the top of the standings.
Piastri has taken six victories to five, the duo have four poles and 12 podiums each, and the margins between them have been very small. Piastri, as the points situation shows, has slightly edged it so far, and he can consider himself the slightly unluckier of the pair, given he was faster in both Britain and Hungary before penalties and strategy intervened.
The contest has so far played out in a cordial fashion, and McLaren—which is all but guaranteed the Constructors’ title—has been keen to emphasize that this will not change. But the pressure and stress of a championship situation can do strange things to competitors, and the tension will surely ramp up with each passing round.
What happens at Red Bull?
Max Verstappen has long accepted his title ambitions are done and dusted and is now just targeting race victories when the RB21 is in the ballpark.
Verstappen has emphasized the main focus has to be on 2026, when Red Bull Powertrains’ first engine will hit the track, and of intrigue is the path and approach forged by Laurent Mekies.
Mekies had two grands prix in quick succession after his appointment as Christian Horner’s successor, and the summer recess has allowed a period in which to digest the situation and enact any changes. Red Bull was a winning machine in two different eras under Horner but the landscape has altered, while several key figures from that time have also left.
A key decision is the identity of Verstappen’s teammate. Yuki Tsunoda has shown glimpses of speed but has yet to put the pieces together, and is on a horrible run of results. Does Mekies persist with Tsunoda long-term or pluck another candidate to be thrown into the lion’s den?
How does Hamilton respond?
Lewis Hamilton has always been an emotional character in the immediacy of on-track activity and a more rational and thoughtful figure given more time to digest situations—but even by his standards, his self-labelling of “useless” in Hungary, while suggesting Ferrari should shop around for a replacement, was a bleak assessment.
Hamilton has had a subdued first campaign in red, aside from his China Sprint Race win, and desperately needed the summer switch-off after a run of miserable weekends.
Hamilton still has the faith and backing of Ferrari, which understands where it has also fallen short, given that the fabled marque has been left in the dust by McLaren this season. But there needs to be an uptick in form to give the partnership the required momentum and positivity heading towards the new regulations, which surely provides Hamilton his final shot at the eighth.
There’s also the matter of Monza, Ferrari’s home ground, in the near future. Win there and anything else that happened in 2025 will be forgotten.
Can Antonelli kick on?
Kimi Antonelli’s rookie campaign has so far subverted the conventional path. Antonelli was instantly impressive at unfamiliar circuits, running competitively at the challenging Suzuka and snatching a surprise Sprint pole in Miami, but has struggled for pace and results at more familiar venues.
There were mitigating circumstances on occasion, such as reliability gremlins, but a run of just one top 10 finish—his podium in Canada—across seven grands prix was a dismal return.
Antonelli’s confidence understandably took a knock, and he is clearly learning about how to deal with setbacks at such a young age under the spotlight. Mercedes’ abandonment of the rear suspension component that did not gel with Antonelli’s naturally attacking style brought the Italian into a happier window in Hungary, and he performed well despite the lowly final position.
This season was always going to be a training year for Antonelli, given the rushed nature of his promotion post-Hamilton, but he and Mercedes could do with a quiet run of solid results to build a little bit of momentum.
Alpine’s driver selection
Changes are afoot at Alpine because, well, water is wet, and Steve Nielsen arrives at the start of September as Managing Director, effectively running the team day-to-day.
Nielsen is vastly experienced and a shrewd operator, and he’ll need to utilize his skills—and quickly—to put Alpine in the right shape for 2026.
Alpine’s A525 isn’t hopeless given Pierre Gasly has picked up 20 points, with its last-placed situation owing much to the competitive nature of 2025-spec Formula 1. But operationally, Alpine has been poor, the perception remains that it is a brand no one really knows what to do with, and the second car has not troubled the points.
The replacement of Jack Doohan with Franco Colapinto has had no tangible uplift and has only served to weaken the reputation of both drivers. Sticking with Colapinto for the remainder of 2025 would be logical—given he raced at the circuits with Williams in 2024—but what path for 2026? The options aren’t exactly great.
Who wins the midfield battle?
It isn’t the most glorious or headline-grabbing battle, but Formula 1’s ‘midfield’, which now accounts for six of the teams, has never been more competitive.
Williams looked safe in fifth place given its strong start, but recent hauls by Aston Martin and Sauber have lifted it into contention. Aston Martin, busy preparing for the input of Adrian Newey and Honda for 2026, has had an uplift since its update at Imola, and while Sauber peaked with its stunning podium at Silverstone, it has been operationally sharper and a contender since its Barcelona package.
Racing Bulls continue to tick over promisingly with a compliant car, while Haas has had a quick machine after its Melbourne nightmare and now just needs to deliver the points that the car deserves, having slipped the wrong side of the fence when opportunities presented themselves.
How does Vegas evolve?
Two of the final 10 events will be in the United States. Austin’s grand prix has firmly established itself with a strong reputation all-round, it has its USP and its quirks, but Las Vegas is only entering its third time (we’ll ignore the pair of early 1980s disasters) as a grand prix host.
Last year’s grand prix ironed out most of the teething issues and failures of 2023’s inaugural running, and there was a tangible shift to opening greater GA options as well. Year three can often be a tricky running for an event, given the shine of newness has rubbed off, while Vegas itself as a destination is also struggling a little bit in 2025 for numbers—especially internationally—given the political landscape.
Event-wise, Las Vegas shifts two hours earlier this year, from 22:00 to 20:00 PST, in a move that should at least aid the sanity of paddock personnel and boost viewership on ET.
What happens with the US TV deal?
Formula 1 coverage returned to ESPN in 2018, shortly after Liberty Media bought the championship, but its contract expires at the end of 2025. The same year Formula 1 launched its F1TV product, which remains available in the United States under the current ESPN deal.
The US market remains highly important to Formula 1 and negotiations are ongoing, with Apple understood to be the front-runner for the next contract cycle. Apple has been buoyed by the financial success of F1: The Movie, which has been by far its most successful output for a company that has had more misses than hits since expanding into the industry.
Streaming services are increasingly dabbling in live sports, but any deal would still represent a substantial leap from both Apple and Formula 1—with a knock-on impact on the availability of F1TV.
How does Cadillac continue to develop?
After announcing its driver lineup, Cadillac continues to prepare its Formula 1 team for its 2026 entry, becoming the first start-up operation to join the championship in a decade.
Its facility at Silverstone has been up and running for a prolonged period, construction is ongoing at Fishers, and it has a decent heft of personnel with Formula 1 experience.
Cadillac is keen to run a TPC test before the end of the year, most likely using an old-spec Ferrari, in order to simulate real-life elements before its first grand prix in 2026, accelerating the understanding for its trackside team.
Do any young guns force teams’ hands?
There was a switch to youth for 2025 with five full-time rookies on the grid and, while Jack Doohan has been axed for Franco Colapinto, the majority of those newcomers will be with their current teams in 2026 as well.
Naturally, there will not be a similar influx of new faces year-on-year but, even with the grid expanding to 22 cars, there remains a high chance that there will not be a single rookie to start 2026.
Liam Lawson looked in danger of dropping by the wayside, but he arrested his decline with a run of promising events pre-summer, while Red Bull’s Formula 2 protégé Arvid Lindblad has had a so-so but not outstanding campaign in the secondary series.
Leonardo Fornaroli is seeking to make it back-to-back titles in Formula 3 and Formula 2 but is unattached to a Formula 1 operation and his name is not making waves. It could be a fallow season for the young guns.
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