Seven of the eight new signings on the 2025 Formula 1 grid can be broadly satisfied with their start. Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton is perhaps the only exception.
Kimi Antonelli sits above Hamilton, the driver he succeeded at Mercedes, in the world championship. Haas driver Esteban Ocon is also an impressive ninth, fuelled by his P5 at the Chinese GP.
Carlos Sainz’s case is less clear-cut. The new Williams driver only scored one point in his first four weekends, but it seems he’s now made a breakthrough.
Sainz has finished in the top 10 in consecutive races and starred in qualifying with back-to-back third-row starts. He sits one point ahead of Nico Hulkenberg, who may yet be responsible for Sauber’s entire 2025 tally after his P7 in Australia.
| RANK | DRIVER | TEAM | PTS |
| 1 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 48 |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 41 |
| 3 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 14 |
| 4 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 7 |
| 5 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | 6 |
| 6 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 6 |
| 7 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | 5 |
| 8 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | 0 |
That’s not necessarily an indictment of Gabriel Bortoleto, instead simply a reflection of the car’s limitations. F2 champion Bortoleto has creditably outqualified Hulkenberg twice in the first six rounds.
Fellow rookies Oliver Bearman and Isack Hadjar have also stacked up well against more experienced drivers. They’ve each had standout moments, but the challenge for both – Bearman in particular – is to be more consistent.
Damon Hill says Toto Wolff is looking ‘very smart’ after Kimi Antonelli gamble
Before the Miami GP, many ranked Hadjar above Antonelli in the rookie of the year stakes. But then the Italian bagged a record-breaking Sprint pole.
He became the youngest driver to set the pace in any F1 qualifying format. While he slipped to seventh in a chaotic race, he secured a career-best P3 on the grid for the Grand Prix.
Speaking to Fox Sports Argentina in the paddock, Damon Hill saluted Toto Wolff for nailing his driver gamble. He replaced the most successful racer in the sport’s history with an untested, and by all accounts crash-prone, 18-year-old.
But Antonelli is already demonstrating his superstar potential.
“I think everyone thought Toto had lost his mind a little bit!” Hill said. “He’s now looking very smart. He’s starting to deliver on that promise that clearly they knew he had. He’s still very young. He’s going to make mistakes.
“It’s really important to show that you have it in you to be the quickest. Confidence is huge. He’s obviously got a lot of confidence. He seems like a very charming person as well.
“He’s got a smiley personality, but he’s quick and talented. When you’re very young, and you’re that talented and you’ve put a car on pole position, you’ve made Formula 1 history already.”
Speak to Mercedes staff, and they all say the same thing about Kimi Antonelli
James Hinchcliffe says Antonelli is still struggling to maintain front-running pace. This is perhaps to be expected, particularly as he learns how to manage the tyres.
Antonelli apparently ‘wrote off’ two Mercedes cars with accidents in testing. On that basis, Wolff may have been bracing himself for a dent in the cost cap.
But even though he’s the third-youngest driver in the sport’s history, he’s hardly damaged the car in the first quarter of the season.
Everyone at Mercedes is excited about Antonelli, confident there is ‘so much more’ to come. His ‘very analytical’ and ‘precise’ feedback has impressed his engineers, including Hamilton’s old right-hand man Peter Bonnington.
