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Tyres NorthamptonMax Verstappen returned to victorious ways as F1's European season began with the Emilia Romagna GP. The reigning champion's triumph has opened up the title fight again, with current leader Oscar Piastri only crossing the line P3. It marks Verstappen's fourth successive P1 finish in Imola, and will encourage Red Bull that they can still compete in 2025.
The two championship rivals shared the front row once again, with Piastri taking pole ahead of Verstappen. The Australian didn't lead out of the first chicane, though. A fast-starting George Russell rocketed off the grid from P3 to worry Piastri, who promptly defended the inside line into Tamburello. Verstappen needed no excuse to use the opening on the outside to sweep into the lead in a brave, millimetre-perfect pass.
Russell, so close to having the launch to reach P1, remained in third but under intense pressure from Lando Norris. Despite upgrade packages up and down the paddock, McLaren still boasts the best car of the 10 teams. Norris used the MCL39's advantage to stick close to the Mercedes, and made an unconventional pass on the entry to the Villeneuve chicane to grab P3.
With Piastri and Verstappen speeding into the distance, the race settled down until the pit stops. Pirelli introduced a new compound for their first home race of 2025. The C6 is the softest tyre in the range, and made a curious debut over the weekend by losing speed over a single lap. Concerns of high tyre degradation triggered an early stint for some, while others gambled on a longer run.
Russell was the first frontrunner to stop, shortly after Norris powered by to take P3 away. With others following suit, McLaren tried to force Red Bull into defending an undercut by stopping Piastri early. The gamble didn't work, and Piastri returned to the track after a tardy stop with many midfielders to pass while Verstappen streaked ahead in clear air.
Most overtaking action was fought further down, with the Ferrari duo of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc in the thick of things as they tried to recover from a poor qualification on Saturday. Leclerc had muscled by Pierre Gasly before an early stop, but it wasn't going to plan for Hamilton, who was stuck fighting home hero Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
In a shining example of McLaren's speed and Piastri's confidence, the Australian wasted no time getting back up the order. While Hamilton struggled, Piastri made pass after pass to remain in the fight for the win. He eased by Hamilton and Antonelli and soon chased a high-flying Alex Albon, who ran a long stint for Williams.
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The race turned upside down when Esteban Ocon's engine failure triggered a Virtual Safety Car. The yet-to-stop Verstappen immediately came to the pit lane to swap onto the Pirelli Hard tyre. Frustratingly for McLaren, they had stopped Norris one lap too early, and the Briton lost more time against the leading Red Bull.
Racing resumed with Verstappen leading Norris by 19 seconds, with Albon heading Williams' resurgence in P3. Piastri was in hot pursuit, having stopped again in the slowdown. Inevitably, Albon fell to Piastri's superior pace, and next had to worry about Hamilton, who was free of Antonelli and spearheading the Ferrari charge after the pit stops shook up the order.
One final twist remained, though. Antonelli retired from his maiden home race at the same spot Ocon's car failed. This time, however, race control decided to call a full Safety Car to recover the Mercedes, and a flurry of pit stops changed the race's story once more. However, not all drivers had new Pirelli tyres available, leading to a top 10 mixture of fresh and old rubber. Those who took the early pit stop lost out once. The drivers needed to nurse their ageing Hards to the flag while under attack from those who only stopped under the slowdowns.
Piastri was one of the unfortunate drivers whose luck didn't arrive in Imola. Unable to keep up with Verstappen, who had stopped again, the championship leader had to check his mirrors for the fresh-Pirelli-equipped Norris. The two teammates came close at Tamburello, but Norris powered by to reclaim P2 at the same spot Verstappen took the lead on Lap 1.
Tamburello also saw a Ferrari vs. Williams duel reminiscant of F1's 1990s era. Albon's new Pirelli tyres had him pushing Leclerc for P4. The Ferrari driver was unwilling to yield and left Albon tumbling over the gravel after an attack. Hamilton, who trailed them both after stopping again, pushed by, and soon used his new tyres to take P4 from Leclerc instead. Ferrari instructed their Monegasque to cede the place to the Thai driver on the final lap, letting Albon claim his best finish of the year.
Nothing could stop Verstappen in Imola, though, who enjoyed an emphatic victory after his opening lap heroics. Piastri can take solace in that he still leads the championship, though Norris is now only 13 points behind, with Verstappen a further 11 points adrift. With Monaco and Spain coming up over the next two weekends, those standings could rapidly change when F1 leaves Barcelona.
