Slightly Off Center

2025 was a mixed year for F1. The drivers title was close, the constructors was not. There was some racing, even between the title contenders, but most races weren't close. There were some excellent results (podiums for Hulkenberg, Sainz, Antonelli and Hadjar) and some appalling ones (Ferrari, repeatedly Ferrari).

In my 2025 F1 round up, I thought I'd highlight three triumphs and three utter disasters from the year.

I will begin with the triumphs.



Max Verstappen - His driving this season will gain him more kudos than the driving in at least two of his World Title winning seasons.

Whoever designed that McLaren - Zak Brown has been curiously reluctant to mention Rob Marshall and Neil Houldey when talking about the car so I felt they deserved some praise now that I've found their names. The car won the Constructors title with 6 races (and 3 sprint races) to go. That's good work. And they did it without any flagrant, 'all-our-competitors-have-complained', engineering widgets.

Isack Hadjar - After a deeply unpromising start at the Australian Grand Prix (Did Not Start due to accident on formation lap), he ended up being second best of the rookies, despite being in Red Bull Scuderia B. Red Bull main had better not mess him up next year.

I am also going to give a bonus triumph here, please imagine a laurel wreath with a little heart on it, to Anthony Hamilton for supporting Hadjar when his own team didn't. While maybe basic human decency should be the minimum expected, in a world sadly short of it sometimes, it should be celebrated.

Now to the turnips - the actively bad things about this season:



That Ferrari: I do actually like the noble turnip as a vegetable but I have no better way of describing that car. It is appalling. It is beneath Ferrari as a team and has broken the spirit of two drivers who deserve better.

Helmut Marko: For providing zero meaningful support for drivers for either team whose surname was not Verstappen. Your comments, particularly about Hadjar, were unhelpful.

Alpine in general: The car was horrid, but that isn't why they're here. Gasly mostly learnt to manage the car by the end of the season. Colapinto didn't.

Given that poor Jack Doohan got replaced after 6 races for getting nowhere with the car, I remain confused why Colapinto didn't, unless it was the money from his sponsors and the patronage of Flavio Briatore.

Briatore himself earns the poison turnip - dear F1, I love you. I love you because of your engineers who have never found a rule they didn't try to find a loophole in, your drivers and your unceasing nonsense. Why have you let Briatore back in? He doesn't deserve it.

(All pictures come from OpenClipart-Vectors at Pixabay. The turnip is from here OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay and the laurel wreath is from here OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay)