With the 2025 season concluded, it’s time to take stock of what each team has achieved. McLaren are World Champions, with Lando Norris writing his name on the wall of F1 winners. Verstappen misses out on the title by just two points. Ferrari finish fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, failing to meet all the objectives announced at the start of the year. A great season for Haas, Racing Bull, and Williams. Alpine sink into oblivion, seemingly unable to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

GIOVANNI’S END-OF-SEASON REPORT CARDS:
McLaren 9.5. The papaya team delivered an excellent season, winning the Constructors’ Championship well ahead of time. The missing half-point to reach ten is due to their only flaw: driver management. Allowing both drivers to fight freely gave Verstappen the chance to get back into the title fight, which luckily for them still ended with Norris winning. The Woking team triumphs, but must now turn all its attention to 2026 and the regulation changes.

Red Bull 8. The team is left with a bitter taste despite a positive season and a Drivers’ Championship lost by only two points. In terms of Constructors’, they disappoint. Red Bull do not allow their second driver to achieve strong results, sacrificing him and effectively fighting the entire season with only one arrow.

Mercedes had a major step forward, though without managing to establish themselves fully. The technical regulation changes could bring them back to the level of a few years ago, fighting at the top. Russell had a very good season, though less sharp at certain points. Antonelli, in his rookie year, secured two podiums and many points. The driver from Bologna will now have to work hard to confirm himself and be a contender next year as well. Overall grade for the Brackley team: 9.

Ferrari finish fourth in the Constructors’ Championship. Hamilton disastrous, with three Q1 eliminations in the last three races of the year. The winter and the regulation change must be the turning point for the Maranello team. They must now work to provide their two drivers with a car capable of competing. The team is barely sufficient, thanks only to Leclerc, who saves what little there is to save. Grade: 6.

Williams 7. The British team had a very strange season. In the first half they were extremely competitive, with Albon as the lead driver, always fighting at the front, unlike Sainz. After the summer break, the situation flipped: the Spaniard scored two podiums, while Albon became increasingly anonymous. If next year’s growth continues steadily, the team may achieve several satisfying results.

Racing Bull 8. The Faenza team started strong, with both drivers consistently in the top ten. Hadjar even achieved a podium at Zandvoort. The driver swap between the Japanese and the New Zealander did not produce the desired results and cost the team some points. Looking ahead to 2026, the driver lineup does not inspire confidence. Lawson, in my view, is not at the level of the 22 drivers on the grid and is paired with rookie Lindblad.

Sauber 8. Starting as backmarkers last season, the team grew significantly, scoring many points and achieving Hulkenberg’s first career podium. Bortoleto had a very positive season, though he declined slightly in the final races.

Aston Martin 6. Stroll’s team was very inconsistent throughout the entire season. Alonso had to fight with all his strength to try to bring home important points. Stroll was lost, absolutely insufficient. It will be interesting to see what kind of car the drivers will have next year, given the very high expectations.

Haas 8. Bearman delivered an impressive season, helped also by the improvements of the car. As a rookie, the British driver beat his teammate despite the latter having several years of F1 experience. I did not expect these results, partly because I was unsure of the driver’s true value, given that he had not won much in his career, and partly because of the team he was driving for.

Finally, Alpine 4. The French team was disastrous throughout the season. The only one salvageable was Gasly, capable of extracting the maximum from the car whenever possible. Flavio Briatore does not know where to start and once again shows that he does not understand much about drivers, as demonstrated by the choice made between Colapinto and Doohan. Expectations for next year are extremely low, despite having a Mercedes engine. In my opinion, a manufacturer like Alpine relying on another team for engines makes no sense and is completely out of place. If next year also ends in technical failure, it will not be well regarded by the French press, already displeased with the switch to Mercedes power units.

Author: Gabriele Bovio

• The fifth and sixth rounds of the Champions of the Future Academy, played on November 24-26 and December 1-3, had two faces for Julia Angelard.
• In Al Ain, Tuesday’s qualifying, heats and the final race went well for the Polish woman, who finished in a high fifth position. Racing in such conditions is quite specific, as the tracks have a lot of sand from the desert, which makes overtaking much more difficult.
• The final competition in Al Forsan, in turn, was marked by bad luck for the Polish competitor – her rivals often pushed her off the track or caused situations that required her to escape from the track, thus losing valuable positions in the heats.

Despite the wintry weather in Europe, the karting season is drawing to a close on a hot note. This is due not only to the final two rounds of the Champions of the Future Academy series, but also to the race venue – the United Arab Emirates. It was on the desert tracks of Al Ain and Al Forsan, November 24-26 and December 1-3, that Julia Angelard competed in the final two rounds of the 2025 season.

Al Ain – a fantastic Tuesday and a slightly weaker Wednesday
The unusually held Monday-to-Wednesday competition promised to be a battle for points, as confirmed by the Polish driver’s solid pace during Tuesday’s race. Despite unsuccessful qualifying and starting 17th, Julia Angelard demonstrated her ability to consistently overtake her rivals and climb the ranks in both heats. She finished the first heat in 11th place, and in the second, she climbed to tenth. These strong results guaranteed a 10th-place start in the final heat, which translated into an even better fifth-place finish and a positive outlook for Wednesday’s competition.

Unfortunately, after the new engine was draw on Wednesday and it became difficult to find a compromise between the machine and the driver, which made the battle for good results difficult. Julia Angelard finished the qualifying session in 15th place, achieving similar positions in the heats and final, although she had hoped for a much better result.

Al Forsan – fighting against bad luck and the effects of rivals’ mistakes
The final round of the Champions of the Future Academy season, held at the Al Forsan circuit, also didn’t deliver the result the teenage Ward Racing driver had hoped for. In qualifying, she failed to put together a good, fast lap, resulting in a poor starting position. As a result, throughout the weekend, Julia Angelard could only close the gap by overtaking her rivals and avoiding mistakes. Advances to 19th and 16th in the heats allowed her to start the first heat from 16th, ultimately finishing in P14.

Wednesday’s competition looked slightly brighter – a much better pace in the qualifying session resulted in a ninth-place finish. In the first heat, Julia Angelard dropped to 11th, while in the second, due to confusion and a collision in front of her, she dropped from ninth to 15th in the first corners, ultimately finishing in P14. The loss of position meant she had to start the final heat from 12th on the grid. Unfortunately, on the fourth lap, after a heavy impact on the exit straight, Julia’s kart’s axle, along with the sprocket and right wheel, broke, effectively eliminating her from the race for a good result. Fortunately, the seemingly serious accident resulted in only minor damage to her equipment.

Julia Angelard: you have to look for the positives
“Despite a good start to the round in Al Ain, my driving in the Emirates was definitely not my best performance, but we have to look for the positives – I’m happy with the pace I showed at the start of the fifth round, because it lets me know that as long as the kart allows me to fully utilize my potential, and my rivals don’t force me off the track, lose positions, or eliminate me from the competition, I can fight at the top of the field. I can’t wait to see what the 2026 season brings – I hope it’s a lot of good things, but in the meantime, I’m bringing home an interesting trophy in the form of a broken axle. Now it’s time to quickly recharge my batteries and catch up on schoolwork so I can pass my exams as best as I can before the end of the first half of the school year and start preparing for the new season, which will start in mid-January,” emphasizes the Minardi Management protégé.

Unlike many of her rivals this year, Julia Angelard will continue to compete in the junior karting division in the 2026 season due to her young age. The teenage athlete has several events lined up before the start of the upcoming year’s competition, which she will soon be announcing on her social media.

Alla vigilia del Gran Premio di Abu Dhabi, ultima e decisiva sfida per il titolo Mondiale 2025 di Formula 1, riportiamo in esclusiva il pensiero di Giovanni Minardi, Fondatore e anima sportiva di Minardi Management. Forte di oltre 35 anni vissuti nel motorsport internazionale, la sua esperienza rende particolarmente autorevole la lettura di un finale così aperto ed equilibrato.
Lando Norris arriva all’appuntamento con 408 punti, inseguito da Max Verstappen a quota 396 e da Oscar Piastri con 392. Tre piloti racchiusi in appena 16 lunghezze, distacchi minimi e un Mondiale che si deciderà soltanto sotto l’ultima bandiera a scacchi della stagione. Di seguito, l’analisi completa rilasciata da Giovanni Minardi.

Le dichiarazioni esclusive di Giovanni Minardi

Sul vantaggio di Norris e la forza mentale di Verstappen:
«Il mio pensiero è che, sicuramente, Lando Norris sia avvantaggiato per i punti, ma credo che la forza mentale di Max Verstappen in queste occasioni e oltretutto su una pista dove va sempre molto forte possa rappresentare un’arma in più per lui. Sinceramente, io mi tengo Verstappen: per l’esperienza che ha, per la padronanza che dimostra, per il fatto di essere un quattro volte Campione del Mondo. Ha una freddezza particolare e, soprattutto, nulla da perdere rispetto agli altri due.»

Sul ruolo di Piastri nella lotta al titolo:
«Ovviamente, Oscar Piastri è quello più in difficoltà perché la distanza è importante anche per lui, ma a mio parere se la giocheranno soprattutto Norris e Verstappen. Max, grazie alla sua esperienza e alla sua tranquillità, ha qualcosina in più nonostante il distacco in classifica.»

Sullo scenario della gara e il possibile colpo di scena:
«Questa è la situazione. Teoricamente l’ordine dovrebbe essere Norris, Verstappen e Piastri, ma io dico che Verstappen potrebbe regalarci qualche emozione in più. Se dovesse conquistare la pole position, metterebbe subito in difficoltà sia Norris sia Piastri. Per questo motivo vedo ancora Max in grado di compiere un ennesimo miracolo da grande campione.»

Sulle responsabilità del team McLaren nella gestione della stagione:
«Se così fosse, sarebbe una sconfitta che riguarderebbe più il team che i piloti, perché la mancata decisione su alcune situazioni ha portato la McLaren ad arrivare all’ultima gara senza aver già chiuso il Mondiale. Con la supremazia tecnica mostrata, avrebbero potuto e forse dovuto chiuderlo in anticipo.»

Le parole di Giovanni Minardi offrono una lettura chiara di un finale che si giocherà tutto su esperienza, nervi saldi e capacità di sfruttare ogni occasione. A Yas Marina non ci sarà spazio per errori.

Verstappen triumphs in Qatar ahead of Oscar Piastri thanks to a brilliant strategy and closes the championship gap to -12. Piastri, who led for most of the race, owes his second place to a strategic error by the pit wall, which effectively handed victory to the Dutchman. Taking advantage of the mistake is Carlos Sainz in the Williams, who secures his second podium of the season. Ferrari collapses, finishing the championship in fourth place in the Constructors’ standings. The title will therefore be decided at the final race in Abu Dhabi.

GIOVANNI’S COMMENTARY
Both on track and morally, the winner is Max Verstappen’s Red Bull. After a difficult sprint, the Dutch driver rediscovered his performance and, thanks to the team’s perfect strategy, reduced the gap to just 12 points behind Norris, the championship leader. A good weekend also for Tsunoda, who scored points in both the sprint and the main race.

McLaren comes out defeated on a track where the MCL39 is clearly superior. After winning the sprint with Piastri, the Woking team delivered a true disaster in the race. Now the team must make a decision, otherwise Verstappen may be the one to capitalize.

Carlos Sainz returns to the podium, delivering a flawless race thanks also to excellent work from the pit wall. Albon continues to struggle and now risks being overtaken in the drivers’ standings by his teammate.

At Mercedes, Antonelli continues to shine, once again finishing ahead of his teammate. The Silver Arrows are now very close to securing second place in the Constructors’ Championship.

Another disaster for Ferrari. Leclerc salvages what he can, while Hamilton sinks even deeper. The British driver might even start thinking about retirement. Another season this disastrous does not seem like the right choice, and I don’t think he can withstand it — not to mention the damage to his image, because in 2026, with another similar season, people would remember him for two negative years in red rather than for his seven world titles.

Aston Martin sees the lion of Oviedo roar once more: Fernando Alonso. The Spaniard extracts the maximum — albeit limited — potential from his car. Stroll remains lost.

At Racing Bull, Lawson finishes ahead of his teammate, who nonetheless has a strong weekend. Important points for the Faenza team in the Constructors’ fight.

A weekend to forget for Haas, with Bearman retiring with a penalty and Ocon in great difficulty.
Alpine starts well, with excellent qualifying from Gasly, but must give up on the points after contact with Hülkenberg. Colapinto finishes fourteenth thanks to several retirements.

Finally, Sauber. Hülkenberg commits a rookie mistake in the collision with Gasly. Bortoleto is slowly improving but still outside the points.

Author: Gabriele Bovio