F1 2025 - Imola GP: Max Verstappen Bounces Back With A Comfortable Win

Max Verstappen once again shows why he is still the top dog as the Red Bull Racing driver wins his second race of the year at the legendary Imola circuit. The win is also Verstappen’s fourth in a row at the iconic Italian circuit, beating the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the process. Piastri still leads the championship but his lead has been narrowed down to 13 points to teammate Norris and 22 points to Verstappen.

Despite starting second, Verstappen pulled off an incredible move around the outside of pole sitter Piastri into the first chicane on the opening lap. Since then, he was never put under pressure by either of the McLarens or other cars, not even after the safety car restart that was called due to Kimi Antonelli’s retired car needing recovery.

McLaren decided to split the strategies with championship leader, Piastri, clearly not favoured by opting for the traditional two-stop strategy. Not only did he have to fight and make his way through the field, but he also destroyed his tyres in the process after the first stop. In contrast, Norris did the exact same thing that Verstappen did, opting originally for a single stop and pitting behind the safety car. On the restart, Norris with fresher tyres managed to zip past Piastri to finish second.

Behind the trio, Ferrari really timed their pit stops well. From a disappointing qualifying result of 11th and 12th for Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, the two Ferrari drivers managed to finish sixth and fourth respectively. There was a controversial period in the final few laps between Leclerc and the Williams of Alex Albon, where the latter felt Leclerc drove him off the track while defending for the spot. Ultimately, Ferrari narrated to its driver that it was better to let Albon have the spot than risk a time penalty.

Mercedes’ George Russell, the second Williams of Carlos Sainz, Racing Bull’s Isack Hadjar and the other Red Bull Racing car of Yuki Tsunoda rounded off the top ten.

McLaren are still the best team on the grid, extending their grip on the constructors’ championship over Mercedes furthermore. There’s no rest for the teams and drivers, though. The next race is at yet another iconic venue, Monaco, and it is right next week. And the week after they go racing in Spain.