Max Verstappen has been speaking about the 2025 Formula 1 pecking order after pre-season testing. For the fourth straight season, he starts as the defending champion.
Verstappen has only won the Australian Grand Prix once during his career (2023), and doesn’t sound optimistic of adding to that tally this time. Red Bull were somewhat underwhelming in Bahrain.
Meanwhile, reigning constructors’ champions McLaren may have concealed their true potential. Lando Norris didn’t set a headline low-fuel lap time, but he did impress over a full race distance.
Indeed, McLaren’s rivals will surely be alarmed by Norris’ long-run pace. They have made bold changes to their car after beating Ferrari to the title by 14 points.
Ferrari’s test was very much mixed. Karun Chandhok was encouraged by Lewis Hamilton’s data, suggesting the SF-25 allowed him to attack.
However, the car’s handling seemed to suffer when the temperatures rose on the final day. Finally, Mercedes think they’re third fastest, which would be an improvement from last year.
Max Verstappen believes McLaren are the only 2025 F1 title contenders as it stands
Speaking at a Viaplay event, Verstappen warned his fans not to expect a victory at Albert Park. He admits Red Bull didn’t meet their own expectations in the pre-season running.
Verstappen ruined a set of tyres in frustration, but he was more composed out of the car. The teams have a fortnight between the end of testing and practice for the Australian GP to work out what adjustments must be made.
As it stands though, Verstappen thinks only McLaren are in a position to win the title. That’s bad news for fans of Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari.
In a recent interview, Helmut Marko said McLaren were two-to-three-tenths ahead of Red Bull. In the final year of the ruleset where teams are naturally nearing the limits of their concepts, that’s a significant margin to make up.
“How many teams can fight for the championship? At the moment only one,” Verstappen said, via journalist Piergiuseppe Donadoni. “It has a nice colour, orange. They are clearly in the lead.
“We expected maybe a little more in the tests but we have time to look at the data. There is still work to do and like other teams they want to see improvements already in Australia. However, I don’t think we can fight for the victory in Melbourne.”
Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari fans won’t enjoy reading Ted Kravitz’s Australian Grand Prix prediction
Everyone in the paddock thinks McLaren are quickest pre-Melbourne. But as last year showed, they must execute at the elite level to turn that pace advantage into points.
Ted Kravitz has predicted a McLaren one-two next weekend, and surprisingly he left Verstappen and both Ferrari drivers off the podium. Instead, he’s backing George Russell for third place.
It’s worth remembering that Red Bull were dominant for the first five races last season, then a major McLaren upgrade completely changed the landscape. There will be fewer developments this year ahead of the 2026 regulation changes, but Andrea Stella’s squad will be under pressure to continue their impressive hit rate.
The consensus – before testing at least – was that 2025 would be one of the closest seasons in recent memory. Even if McLaren change that narrative, there could still be an entertaining duel between Norris and Oscar Piastri.
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