Martin Brundle peered into his crystal ball for the F1 2025 campaign, placing Ferrari and McLaren, then Red Bull and Mercedes, in different camps for the title battle to come.

Once the Max Verstappen and Red Bull dominance faded as F1 2024 went on, McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes all had their stints with leading pace, those four teams multiple-time grand prix winners by the end of the season, sparking the potential for an all-time classic title battle to come in F1 2025.

Ferrari and McLaren ‘in-fighting’ versus ‘one-horse’ Red Bull, Mercedes?

McLaren became the first team to launch their new challenger for the season ahead in an unexpected Silverstone shakedown run in the MCL39, with both drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, harbouring Drivers’ Championship ambitions.

Meanwhile at Ferrari, seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton has been putting in the pre-season mileage after his blockbuster move from Mercedes, as he chases that record eighth crown. Alongside him, Charles Leclerc – Ferrari’s academy graduate entering his seventh season with the team – will look to prove he was the one that would take Ferrari back to the F1 summit all along.

However, Brundle believes these two driver line-ups are going to produce some “in-fighting” in the quest for championship glory. A potential advantage for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes’ George Russell? At those teams, Brundle expects a different story.

Your guide to F1 2025

👉 Five under-the-radar stories to look out for in F1 2025

👉 The ultimate F1 2025 guide: Everything you need to know about the 2025 season

In a Sky Sports News interview, Brundle was asked whether he believes McLaren can handle two drivers pursuing the title, when Verstappen – chasing a fifth consecutive World Championship- is the clear number one at Red Bull.

He replied: “Well, I think that’s a really interesting point in terms of yes, the Constructors’ Championship, I think McLaren probably start favourite in that.

“Ferrari have got a great line-up, of course, with Hamilton and Leclerc.

“But I agree with you, Red Bull, and to an extent, Mercedes, will be a one-horse team, George Russell there, because they’ve got Kimi Antonelli, who we know, is expected to be spectacularly good, but he’ll make mistakes as a new 18-year-old, and Max is all dominant.

“I think Liam Lawson will be strong in the head and strong enough to be a credible number two driver, but you’re right, Red Bull and Mercedes will, I think, for the Drivers’ Championship, be one-horse teams.

“Ferrari and McLaren will have some in-fighting going on. They might start taking points of each other. But you know, with 24 races in the championship, a team can’t start even thinking about that until August, September.”

The much-anticipated F1 2025 season gets underway with the Australian Grand Prix on March 16, but before that, all 10 teams will head to London’s 02 for a first-of-its-kind season launch on February 18, followed by pre-season testing in Bahrain from February 26-28.

Read next: Max Verstappen fans target George Russell’s crew after fiery clash