Martin Brundle believes McLaren and Ferrari are the favourites to win the 2025 F1 constructors’ title. They finished last year in first and second and are set to resume their rivalry.
Just 14 points separated the two teams in the end, with Lando Norris’ victory at the finale in Abu Dhabi enough to seal glory. McLaren are one of just two teams to have retained the same line-up this year.
Ferrari controversially let Carlos Sainz go in order to sign seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton. Despite Hamilton’s status within the sport, Charles Leclerc is expected to receive equal treatment.
Likewise, McLaren are prioritising their constructors’ defence, rather than throwing their weight behind either driver. Norris and Oscar Piastri will both believe they can dethrone Max Verstappen.
Verstappen has the advantage of being the clear number one at Red Bull. Liam Lawson, who has replaced Sergio Perez on the other side of the garage, has only taken part in 11 F1 races.
Few other teams have a clear number one/number two dynamic. Fernando Alonso has consistently outperformed Lance Stroll, but the latter’s position is protected by his father owning the team.
Yuki Tsunoda, Esteban Ocon and Nico Hulkenberg will hope to be the team leaders alongside rookies. But Isack Hadjar, Oliver Bearman and Gabriel Bortoleto are bidding to make a statement by beating them at the outset.
Martin Brundle’s verdict on Mercedes as Kimi Antonelli joins George Russell
Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Brundle suggested that Mercedes could be overly reliant on George Russell this year. The 26-year-old is a three-time Grand Prix winner who’s also bagged five poles and 15 podiums.
Kimi Antonelli is ‘expected to be spectacularly good’ in the long-term, but Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is downplaying hopes for his debut season. The team have branded it a transition year.
The 18-year-old, who becomes the third-youngest driver in F1 history, crashed on his free practice debut for Mercedes at the Italian Grand Prix last year. Juan Pablo Montoya has heard ‘rumours’ that Antonelli had ‘a lot’ of accidents in his private testing programme too.
Mercedes told one journalist last year that Antonelli only crashed once behind the scenes.
“To an extent Mercedes will be a one-horse team with George Russell there,” Brundle said. “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.”
Ted Kravitz thinks Kimi Antonelli is better than Max Verstappen in one area
Karun Chandhok has warned Antonelli could struggle over a full race distance, just like Oscar Piastri – another driver who started his career at a big-name team. Chandhok expects the teenager to be formidable over a single lap.
Ted Kravitz feels Antonelli has the best ‘reactions’ on the F1 grid, even ahead of established superstars like Verstappen. That could help him navigate his first race starts at the pinnacle of motorsport.
There’s uncertainty at this stage over just how good the Mercedes car will be. Last year, they finished fourth in the standings, but they were the class of the field in favourable conditions, most notably the Belgian and Las Vegas Grands Prix, when they bagged one-twos.
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