Race Week Buzz: Five Key Storylines Ahead of… Read more
The 2025 Formula 1 season is gaining momentum fast, and Bahrain marks the midpoint of the year’s first triple header. With teams returning to a well-known venue—the site of pre-season testing—there’s still no shortage of drama and anticipation building up to the Bahrain Grand Prix.
A Tight Championship Battle
While the Japanese Grand Prix wasn’t the most thrilling race in terms of on-track action, it still played a significant role in shaping the championship picture. With drivers pushing hard and avoiding errors, the intensity was high even if the overtakes were few. Max Verstappen’s first win of the season at Suzuka brought him within just one point of current leader Lando Norris. Although McLaren appears to have the edge in terms of outright pace, the margins are slim—allowing Verstappen to capitalize with a strong qualifying performance.
The championship is already heating up after just three rounds. Each race weekend, including the Sprint in China where Lewis Hamilton took victory from pole, has seen a different winner. Four races, four different winners from pole position: Norris, Verstappen, Hamilton, and Oscar Piastri. This suggests that clean air is playing a key role this season, and also highlights just how evenly matched the top teams are. Piastri’s third place in Japan keeps him firmly in the hunt, sitting just 13 points behind Norris, while George Russell remains close behind, only four points further adrift after a small qualifying error.
Tsunoda and Lawson’s Key Opportunity
One of the major talking points leading into the Japanese Grand Prix was Red Bull’s decision to reinstate Yuki Tsunoda in place of Liam Lawson after just two races. Both drivers showed professionalism through the transition, but qualifying at Suzuka revealed the challenges they face. Tsunoda struggled to put together a clean Q2 lap and ended up slowest in the session—just behind Lawson in the Racing Bulls car.
Neither driver scored points in Japan, but Tsunoda did manage to gain a few places during the race, while Lawson slipped back
