Verstappen rumours and Hamilton's issues: The key storylines of F1 in 2025

Hamilton’s first day in Maranello took the Formula 1 world by storm in February, after his blockbuster transfer from Mercedes was completed

During the Chinese Grand Prix, Hamilton could already show what he is capable of on his best days: after taking Sprint pole on Friday, he led from start to finish. Since the format was introduced, the only Ferrari driver to win a Sprint is Lewis Hamilton.

The season did not continue like that, as he failed to record a single Grand Prix podium despite finishing fourth on a couple of occasions.

At the Hungaroring, the British driver possibly experienced his worst moment of the season. After his Q2 exit, the seven-time world champion said that he is 'useless,' and maybe the team should 'replace the driver.'

Will Verstappen end up joining Mercedes? That was another question people were trying to answer up until the Hungarian Grand Prix, when the Dutchman confirmed that he will stay with the Austrian team for 2026.

Amid constant rumours, Verstappen was at one point pictured on a yacht with Toto Wolff in Italy as well.

In the end, Mercedes will also continue with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli next year.

As they were the only team making changes ahead of 2026, Red Bull still continued to dominate transfer rumours until after the Qatar Grand Prix. Isack Hadjar will join Verstappen at Red Bull Racing next year, and Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad will drive for Racing Bulls.

McLaren's so-called papaya rules became notorious during the 2025 season. Many did not appreciate the team's decision to swap back Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri after the McLaren crew made a mistake during the Briton's pit stop.

As a result, with Verstappen also being in the picture for the world title, Zak Brown, Andrea Stella, Norris and Piastri all had to answer questions about Papaya Rules week in, week out.

Verstappen and Red Bull Racing managed to make the championship exciting this year.

The F1 world continue to watch how the gap shrank throughout the year with excitement. McLaren CEO Brown, for example, called the Red Bull driver a 'guy from a horror movie,' to which Verstappen said that he could call him 'Chucky'.

After trailing the championship leader by 104 points, the four-time world champion finished just two points behind Norris in the standings.

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