Mid-Term Formula 1 Report as Its Time to Go Back to School
While McLaren teammates Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are fighting out Formula 1’s World Drivers’ Championship, other drivers are battling for bragging rights within their team or even survival within the sport. With 10 races remaining on 2025’s calendar, F1 betting expert Roy Brindley delivers his 20-driver half-term progress report.
McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri are locked in a thrilling Championship battle. © Getty
Formula 1 Half Term Report
Formula 1 will return from its summer vacation on August 31 with the Dutch Grand Prix signalling teams and drivers returning to school following a mandatory three-week F1 factory shutdown.
The 2025 season has already passed its halfway point. Fourteen races are in the history books, but 10 are yet to be decided.
The curtain will come down on proceedings on December 7 in Abu Dhabi. The latest bookmaker odds indicate it is inevitable that a first-time world champion will be crowned, and it is highly probable the championship will go down to the wire.
McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, collectively winning 11 races in 2025, account for all but a tiny fraction of online bookmakers outright book. Max Verstappen may be trading as the third favourite, but he can be backed on odds of 100/1!
F1 Podium Steps and Polished Performances
In just his third season in Formula 1, Oscar Piastri leads the championship standings with 284 world championship points. He is nine points ahead of Lando Norris, with Max Verstappen in third on 175 points.
Had Norris not rear-ended his McLaren teammate in the Canadian Grand Prix, theoretically, he would have led the championship by a single point. However, with five race victories compared to Piastri’s six, many believe the right person sits at the top of the table.
Seven other drivers (seven) have stood on a podium step during the year. While failing to finish better than fifth, others have outshone their teammates. So far, one driver has lost their race seat. One team boss, Red Bull’s Christian Horner, has been dropped from his team.
Who Has Been Hot and Who Has Not in 2025?
Here we summarise the year-to-date for all drivers on the 2025 starting grid. Last year, 24 individuals drove in at least one race. The scorecards of some of the names towards the bottom of this list suggest revolving doors could swing into action, allowing that number to be matched.
Oscar Piastri (284 points – McLaren)
No fireworks, but calm, consistent and sometimes methodical, Piastri is reminiscent of Alain Prost. The Australian has outqualified his McLaren teammate by a ratio of 8-6. An ill-timed ‘safety car’ during the Miami Sprint and a 10-second penalty at the British Grand Prix have cost him winning points, meaning he could be even further ahead in the standings.
Lando Norris (275 points – McLaren)
Only 25 but closing in on 150 race starts, Norris was the championship favourite at the season’s outset. Crashing in qualifying in Saudi Arabia and hitting his teammate in Canada have been his low points. However, McLaren has enjoyed four 1-2 finishes in the last four races – Norris was on the top podium step for three of those.
Piastri and Norris come together in Canada! 😱
Here’s the collision between the two McLarens 💥#F1 #CanadianGP pic.twitter.com/sKo3GRQ63Q
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 15, 2025
Max Verstappen (187 points – Red Bull)
Two impressive wins and three seconds from a car described as “barely manageable” underline the champion’s talent and current abilities. If there can be any doubt, his teammates have collected a total of seven points!
George Russell (172 points – Mercedes)
Seven podium finishes and a race win – outqualifying his teammate 13-1 and finishing ahead of him in all 14 races. Fast and thoroughly reliable. Nothing more needs to be said!
Charles Leclerc (151 points – Ferrari)
With five podiums, the Monegasque driver has outperformed Lewis Hamilton by a significant margin. Reliable and consistent, Leclerc deserves to win a race in 2025.
Lewis Hamilton (109 points – Ferrari)
Trailing his Ferrari teammate 10-4 in qualifying results and 11-2 in race results (as both were disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix), Hamilton, following a bright start, has his head hung low.
Kimi Antonelli (64 points – Mercedes)
He may be young with great potential, but potential does not garner championship points. The inability to finish ahead of his teammate in a single race must lead team boss Toto Wolff to question his decision to give the 19-year-old Italian the race drive. In his defence, Antonelli has not been making rookie mistakes.
Alex Albon (54 points – Williams)
Ahead of his teammate, Carlos Sainz, in qualifying and race head-to-heads and scoring points in nine out of 14 Grands Prix, Albon has been outstanding. Without reliability issues, he could have acquired additional points. In short, he has been outstanding.
Nico Hulkenberg (37 points – Sauber)
Shaky in qualifying but exceptional in race trim, with a career highlight achieved in the British Grand Prix when he took his first podium. The German may be 38, but he is not slowing down, and with his car improving, a bright future lies ahead.
Wonderful commentary, beautiful scenes 😍#F1 #BritishGP @stakef1team_ks pic.twitter.com/rgbdm2P1EP
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 6, 2025
Esteban Ocon (27 points – Haas)
Qualifying head-to-head results (8-6) and race results (9-5) suggest the Frenchman is marginally the better of the two Haas drivers. A measured and composed approach has served him well recently, and he invariably finishes higher – almost three places on average – than his starting grid position.
Fernando Alonso (26 points – Aston Martin)
Very little reason for cheer during the first few months of the current season, but six points paying positions from his last seven starts and a 14-0 qualifying head-to-head record against his teammate, Lance Stroll, show there’s lots of life in this old dog.
Lance Stroll (26 points – Aston Martin)
In the 10 races that both Aston Martin drivers have completed, Stroll has been behind his teammate. It’s almost an injustice that both stand on 26 points, and if it were not for his father owning the Aston Martin team, Stroll would probably be racing supercars now.
Isack Hadjar (22 points – Racing Bulls)
Measured against teammate Liam Lawson, who he boasts a superior 9-3 record in race qualifying and 8-3 in race results, the 20-year-old rookie has been impressive. However, following a fine run of points scoring in his first nine races, his form has tapered off, and Lawson has appeared the better driver in recent times.
Pierre Gasly (20 points – Alpine)
One respected industry website has recently stated: “Gasly has dragged an absolute trainwreck of a car into points contention on several occasions.” It’s clear he has impressed, and given that he has dominated two teammates, the 168 race veteran would probably have four stars alongside his name if he were a hotel being reviewed!
Liam Lawson (20 points – Racing Bulls)
Dropped from the Red Bull team after just two races – with his replacement doing nothing to suggest it was a good decision – Lawson’s confidence must have been smashed. His early-season results showed that he scored no points until race eight (Monaco). The New Zealander’s form has gone on an upward trajectory with strong points finishes in three of the last four outings.
Carlos Sainz (16 points – Williams)
Sainz’s best race finishing position of eighth reads poorly against his teammate’s three fifth-place finishes. Excuses have been plentiful, but they lack substance, and the stats don’t lie. Sainz has been decidedly bad for his new Betway sponsored Williams team . That statement is underlined by his earning less than a third of the points of his garage mate, Alex Albon.
Gabriel Bortoleto (14 points – Sauber)
The rookie Brazilian has scored points in three of the last four races – most recently taking a career-best sixth in Hungary. The formbook therefore suggests he, like his car, is improving rapidly. Having outqualified teammate, Nico Hulkenberg 8-6 (losing out in race results 5-8) he has already shown deserves his place in the sport.
Yuki Tsunoda (10 points – Red Bull)
Drafted into the Red Bull team after just two 2025 races, the Japanese driver has been nothing short of woeful. A ninth and two tenth placed efforts are his best results, putting him below all but one of the 19 rivals that have driven for the whole season. Expulsion beckons.
Oliver Bearman (8 points – Haas)
Raw pace is there but the teenager has been errant and has accumulated eight penalty points on his licence – meaning he now risks a race ban. Ultimately, his eighth and a pair of tenth placed finishes compare badly to teammate, Esteban Ocon and while he has a contract for 2026, it would be no surprise if he were to be pushed aside.
Franco Colapinto (0 points – Alpine)
Brought into Alpine to replace Jack Doohan after seven races, the Argentinian has done nothing to improve the fortunes of the team’s second car. If anything, Colapinto has been further behind Gasly. With an excitable team boss, it would be no surprise if he is gone before the end of the campaign.
In Conclusion – With an F1 Betting Angle
The UK’s best online betting sites think Piastri will most likely claim the 2025 World Drivers’ Championship, quoting the Australian on 8/13 odds. Norris is currently a 5/4 shot. One breakdown or race-ending collision for either driver could ruin either’s chance and see a significant upheaval in this betting.
On form, Lewis Hamilton and Alex Albon have the best chances of adding to the list of drivers who have made a podium this season. Meanwhile, Liam Lawson and Fernando Alonso could go on a run of points finishes, also claiming some top-six results.
There is nothing to suggest that Yuki Tsunoda’s sequence of seven race starts without a top-10 finish is about to come to an end. From a betting perspective, while Kimi Antonelli has gained plenty of points, it must be noted that the Mercedes driver has only reached the top six in three of his last 11 outings.
