Forget what you thought you knew about the 2025 Formula 1 season. The Hungarian GP wasn’t just a race; it was a changing of the guard. On a hot, demanding day in Budapest, one team cemented its claim to the top, while others faltered under the intense pressure of the title fight.
Lando Norris’s victory was a masterpiece of tire management and strategic brilliance, but the stories of shattered dreams and unexpected heroics in the midfield are just as compelling. Here’s a full breakdown of who won big and who was left wondering where it all went wrong.
Winner: Lando Norris (McLaren)
Lando Norris pulled off a gritty, high-pressure win in Budapest, and it wasn’t just about pace. It was about nerve.
He didn’t get the best launch off the line, falling to fifth after Turn 1. But from there, Norris stayed locked in, slowly climbing back up the order. McLaren had originally put both drivers on a two-stop strategy, until Lando made the medium tires work so well that the team changed his race plan on the fly. That gamble? It won them the race.
- Started: P3 (dropped to P5 after Turn 1)
- Finished: P1 (One-stop: Medium → Hard, ran 39 laps on hards)
- Held off teammate: Oscar Piastri closed to within 0.6 seconds but couldn’t get by
- Title race impact: Cuts Piastri’s lead to just 9 points
The final 10 laps were tense. Piastri, on fresher tires, was closing rapidly, but Norris never put a wheel wrong. If there were doubts about whether he had the edge in this McLaren battle, Hungary settled them.
“Today was close to perfect,” said McLaren boss Zak Brown, after the team’s 200th Formula 1 win. You’d be hard-pressed to disagree.
Four straight McLaren one-twos, and Norris is now within striking distance in the title fight. This was championship stuff, and he knows it.
Loser: Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
Oscar Piastri had the car to win, but not the strategy.
He started P2 and slotted in behind Leclerc early, while teammate Lando Norris dropped back. For the first stint, everything looked calm and controlled. But then McLaren split strategies: Norris was switched to a one-stop, while Piastri stuck to the planned two-stop.
That was the race-defining call.
- Started: P2
- Finished: P2 (Two-stop: Medium → Hard → Hard)
- Final gap: 0.6s behind Norris
- Title impact: Lead shrinks to 9 points (Piastri 284, Norris 275)
Piastri ran strong on his second set of hard tires and erased a 12-second gap in the final laps. But track position was king at the Hungaroring. Even with DRS, he couldn’t find a way past. A last-minute lock-up on Lap 69 sealed it.
“I just want the best chance to beat Lando,” he radioed mid-race; proof of how much this one mattered.
It’s another McLaren 1–2, but Piastri will know this was his to lose. On pace, they were near-equal. On tactics? Lando won it.
Winner: McLaren (Team)
McLaren didn’t just deliver a win in Hungary; they made it count in style. With Norris taking first and Piastri right behind, they secured their 200th Grand Prix victory, while racking up a rare fourth straight one–two finish in 2025.
What set this edition apart wasn’t just the result. It was how they handled the race.
Coming into Hungary, both drivers were slated to run a two-stop. That was until Norris showed unexpected tire life early on. Mid-race, McLaren pivoted, extending his stint and switching him to a one-stop. That bold call paid off in spades.
- Result: Norris P1, Piastri P2
- Strategy split: Both on two stops originally; Norris switched to one-stop after lap 31
- Streak: Four consecutive one–two finishes; only the second time McLaren have done that, matching their 1988 run
- Milestone: McLaren becomes only the second team in F1 history to reach 200 wins (behind Ferrari)
Trust played a huge role too; trust in data, trust in the drivers, and trust in the car. Hungary confirmed it: McLaren isn’t just back, they’re firmly in charge.
Loser: Ferrari (Team)
Ferrari arrived in Budapest with real promise; Leclerc grabbed pole, and Hamilton had shown flashes in practice. But once the lights went out, the weekend spiraled.
Leclerc’s race began smoothly, controlling the pace from the front. But his two-stop strategy (Medium → Hard → Hard) unraveled around Lap 40 as his car suddenly lost grip and performance. Over the final 30 laps, he bled 37 seconds and barely clung to P4.
His rage was clear:
“We have lost all competitiveness… it will be a miracle if we finish on the podium.”
Hamilton’s day was even worse. After a Q2 exit left him starting P12, his reverse strategy (Hard → Medium) couldn’t compensate. Stuck in traffic, unable to attack or defend effectively, he came home P12; his first non-points finish of the season.
- Starts: Leclerc P1, Hamilton P12
- Finishes: Leclerc P4, Hamilton P12
- Core issues: Sudden chassis failure undermined Leclerc; Hamilton trapped and frustrated
- Constructors’ setback: McLaren extended lead over Ferrari in the standings
In Hungary, raw speed on Saturday turned to frustration on Sunday. Ferrari’s failures wept on both mechanical and strategic fronts; and the championship implications are serious.
Winner: George Russell (Mercedes)
George Russell doesn’t always grab the spotlight, but in Hungary, he made sure his presence was felt. While all eyes were on the McLaren fight up front, Russell quietly delivered one of the most composed drives of the weekend, bringing home P3 and keeping Mercedes in the game.
He started fourth on the grid, behind both McLarens and Ferrari’s Leclerc, then made his move as others stumbled. A well-timed pass on Leclerc with eight laps remaining sealed his spot, leaving the Ferrari frustrated after picking up a five-second penalty. From there, Russell defended adeptly, fending off Fernando Alonso’s late charge.
- Started: P4
- Finished: P3
- Key moment: Overtook Leclerc eight laps from the end; later defended from Alonso
- Championship boost: Moves to P4 in standings, just ahead of Leclerc
Consistency won out over outright pace. And with his sixth podium of the season, Russell edged ahead of Max Verstappen in podium count.
This was not just another podium; it was strategic, opportunistic, and exactly what Mercedes needed heading into the summer break.
Loser: Red Bull (Team)
The reigning champions didn’t just lose the race; they lost the plot.
Max Verstappen was never a contender. Starting P8, he lacked grip from Lap 1 and spent most of the race in damage limitation mode. Red Bull’s two-stop strategy couldn’t unlock pace, and Verstappen finished a distant P9; a full 1 minute and 12 seconds behind the lead car.
But it was Yuki Tsunoda’s weekend that truly underscored how far Red Bull have fallen. After starting from the pit lane due to a power unit change, Tsunoda slipped backward with poor tire degradation and car damage. He finished a dismal P17, outside the points, and was even lapped by his teammate.
- Verstappen: Started P8 → Finished P9 (Two-stop strategy)
- Tsunoda: Started Pits → Finished P17
- Constructors’ impact: McLaren extends their lead to 299 points
- Worrying trend: Just 2 podiums in the last 5 races
Red Bull aren’t just off the top; they’re off the pace. The RB21 is unpredictable over long stints, and the gap to McLaren and Ferrari grows clearer every week. Budapest made it official: they’re no longer the benchmark.
Winner: Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
Fernando Alonso may have been battling a sore back, but you wouldn’t know it watching him pilot that Aston Martin into P5. This was his best result of the season, and a standout performance in the midfield.
He qualified on fifth (after missing FP1 due to lumbar strain) and converted that into race pace perfectly. Aston Martin ran a one‑stop strategy, allowing Alonso to manage his tyres superbly and finish just ahead of Stroll in P7; keeping both cars in the points.
- Started: P5 (had missed FP1 with back injury)
- Finished: P5 — maintained position, held off late challengers
- Key moment: Controlled tyre wear and traffic in the DRS train allowed him to stay ahead of late challengers.
- Team boost: With Stroll P7, Aston Martin climbed from P8 to P6 in the Constructors’ standings — their strongest single‑event haul of the season.
This wasn’t flashy; no audacious overtakes or fireworks. It was clean, smart, and earned. Alonso joked afterward that maybe fewer practice laps helped confuse the engineers. But that lighter Friday workload may have actually helped focus their setup and strategy.
This was exactly what Aston Martin needed. Hungaroring may not reward big mistakes, but it rewards consistency and execution. For Alonso, this felt like a reset button, and he walked back to the paddock with a grin.
Loser: Williams (Team)
Williams had a disastrous weekend, and their once-promising season appears to be unraveling. Both drivers failed to score points, leaving the team vulnerable to their rivals in the Constructors’ Championship.
Alex Albon, who started a lowly P19, managed to gain a few places but never looked competitive. His race was plagued by a lack of pace, and he finished a disappointing P15, far from the points-scoring positions he’s used to.
Carlos Sainz had a marginally better qualifying, starting P13, but his race was just as difficult. Despite trying an optimistic one-stop strategy, the car simply lacked the performance to hold its position. Sainz ultimately finished P14, outside the points, making it clear the team has a lot of work to do.
- Albon: Started P19 → Finished P15
- Sainz: Started P13 → Finished P14
- Constructors’ impact: Lost ground to Aston Martin and Sauber
- Worrying trend: Inconsistent car performance, especially on high-downforce tracks.
Budapest made it clear: the Williams FW47 is not a contender on every circuit, and the team will have a tough fight on their hands to maintain their position in the championship.
Winner: Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)
Rookie alert. Gabriel Bortoleto delivered a calm, collected breakout drive in Budapest. He turned a strong qualifying (P7) into a career-best P6 finish, right behind Fernando Alonso. He wasn’t just lucky; he earned every inch.
The Brazilian made a lightning-quick start, swooping past Lance Stroll at Turn 1 and slotting into clean air. From there, he managed a one-stop strategy, preserved his tyres expertly, and held firm under pressure, especially from Max Verstappen into the closing laps.
- Started: P7 (career-best grid slot)
- Finished: P6 (one-stop: medium → hard)
- Key moment: Clean launch past Stroll; then late-race defence versus Verstappen
- Championship context: Behind Alonso in P5; Verstappen limped home in P9. Sauber climbed to seventh in Constructors’ standings with this result
Bortoleto was modest after the race:
“It’s amazing that I’m sandwiched between world champions Alonso and Verstappen — but I showed I belong out here.”
He was awarded Driver of the Day, earning recognition for an outstanding season-best showing that boosted Sauber’s points haul.