Early 2025 Formula 1 Preview: Will this be the best season ever?

Thursday, 23 January 2025 at 06:10

The start of the new Formula 1 season is just around the corner (or to put it better, the chicane) and it’s shaping up to be another thrilling one perhaps even the best ever!

With regulation changes, the emergence of rising talent and the renewal of legendary rivalries, fans all over the world can’t wait for the lights to go out on the first race.

In this early preview report we take a look at some of the main talking points ahead of the new season to give you a better idea of the growing excitement amongst motorsport fans. Read on to find out what to look out for in F1 this year…

When Does it all Start?

If you’re an absolute Formula 1 fiend, you will know that the seasons starts in earnest in February at the Bahrain International Circuit. That’s when the F1 teams will get their first opportunity for non-virtual testing where they can put their new drivers through their paces and test the latest data on their vehicles.

For the non-nerds out there, the F1 season properly starts on March 13th with the Australian Grand Prix due to the Saudi Arabian and Bahraini races being moved to April to accommodate a March Ramadan.

The Betting Favourites

For all you F1 betting fans this time of the year means one thing and one thing only –outrights. So, according to the current odds, here are the favourites to win the drivers and the constructors championships:

F1 Drivers’ Championship

Lando Norris 2/1
Max Verstappen 5/2
Charles Leclerc 9/2
Lewis Hamilton 5/1
Oscar Piastri 9/1

F1 Constructor’s Championship

McLaren 5/4
Ferrari 5/4
Red Bull 4/1
Mercedes 10/1
Aston Martin 50/1

As big believers in the maxim that predictions have a habit of coming back to bite you, we’re not in the game of picking winners. Certainly not three months ahead of the start of a season before we know anything about the drivers or their cars, but as the odds suggest, there could be another thrilling battle for the driver’s championship in store.

But what of the other talking points? Let’s start with the news that sent seismic waves through the sport when it was broke last year.

Hamilton’s Italian Job

The race for the Driver’s Championship is what will take most of the headlines, but aside from that there are a number of stories to keep an eye on. The first being the partnership between legendary British racer Lewis Hamilton and legendary Italian team Ferrari.

Hamilton will certainly be hoping that a move away from flagging Mercedes can see him return to his old winning ways. It will also be intriguing to see how Hamilton’s move to Ferrari impacts on Charles Leclerc.

The Monegasque has spoken of his excitement at the news and shared his hope that the arrival of the Brit will spur him on to greater personal heights. If things start brightly for Team Ferrari it could be a season to remember for the Scuderia.

Lando to Land First Championship?

It seems like Lando Norris has been the next big thing in F1 for so long now that he must be nearing middle-age. He is however just 25 and according to the odds and expert predictions, well poised to win his first ever drivers’ championship.

An impressive season saw him finish runner up in 2024, with a fine run of form toward the tail end of the campaign catching the eye. It also seems as though he’s managed to iron out some of the qualifying errors in his game, which have, pardon the pun, put him in pole position to scoop the sport’s biggest prize this year.

If Norris continues where he left off in 2024 he could be have a 2025 to remember.

The Rise of the Rookie

This season we will see the F1 debuts of Kimi Antonelli, Ollie Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto, Jack Doohan, Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson, all of whom are incredibly talented drivers with buckets of potential.

Rather than simply earning their stripes and settling into their new surroundings, all of these new drivers will have glory on their minds as they make their F1 debuts. Bortoleto, Lawson and Bearman have all been heavily tipped to secure podium finishes which would be a phenomenal achievement.

Whether they do or not, one thing is for sure, F1 2025 will see a huge injection of drama and excitement from an insanely talented crop of youngsters which is fantastic news for us as fans of the sport.

Looking forward to something we haven’t mentioned above? Be sure to let us know about it in the comments section below.