Max Verstappen triumphs at Imola after a lively race

Lando Norris was mocked last year for his unfortunate tendency to lose his pole position advantage at the first corner. His teammate Oscar piastri understood, this Sunday at Imola, that staying in the lead when Max Verstappen starting alongside is not easy. The Dutchman made a superb pass on the championship leader at the first corner, circling Tamburello around the outside with authority. Faced with a clear track ahead of him, the driver Red Bull imposed his racing pace, widening the gap to never be threatened, untilEsteban Ocon was forced to pull over due to a mechanical problem. The virtual safety car brought out by the Frenchman, who had a nightmare weekend - last of three practice sessions, 18th on the grid - gave Max Verstappen a golden opportunity.

VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR 🟡

La Haas Ocon's car is stopped in the grass! The Frenchman is forced to give up ❌#ImolaGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/ECn4D4wYvH

— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) May 18, 2025

Lando Norris, second, had stopped on the previous lap, leaving the four-time world champion alone in the lead with a 20-second lead over the Briton: a boulevard that suggested a suspense-free end to the race for the leading drivers, with Verstappen leading ahead of Norris and Piastri, also a victim of strategy.

Like several other teams, McLaren split its choice between its two drivers: one trying the one-stop strategy, the other a two-stop strategy. It was ultimately the choice of the single pit stop that proved successful, even though the drivers all ultimately made a second stop when the safety car came out, after Kimi Antonelli retired, having been forced to park at the side of the track for his home event.

SAFETY CAR 🟡

Antonelli abandons at home 🇮🇹
The dice are rolled again! 🎲#ImolaGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/wBXabJamp6

— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) May 18, 2025

McLaren prefers internal battle to victory

When the race resumed, Max Verstappen managed to recreate a significant margin ahead of Oscar Piastri, who was on worn tires, and who put up a good fight against Lando Norris, who had pitted under the Safety Car. The Woking team let the Red Bull get away by allowing its drivers to fight, and by the time Norris finally found the gap, it was already too late. The lack of team orders handed victory to Verstappen and added to a list of questionable strategic choices throughout the race (Norris stopping before the VSC, endless pit stops, etc.).

Piastri, in agony on his tires, managed to resist the return of Lewis Hamilton, which failed at the foot of the podium and saved (a little) Ferrari's weekend. The Team had completely missed her Saturday, with a double elimination in Q2, but she succeeded on Sunday: Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton showed astonishing pace, which allowed them to believe in a podium finish until the end.

The Monegasque driver suffered at the restart of the race after the safety car: lacking new tires, he had to finish on very worn tires, like Oscar Piastri in front of him. Fourth at the restart, Leclerc lost to Lewis Hamilton and Alex Albon, which he let pass after forcing him to bite into the gravel trap at Tamburello during his first attack.

Albon believed in the podium

The Thai driver will have some regrets: if he had been able to overtake the number 16 Ferrari more quickly, he might have been able to catch up with Oscar Piastri and bring the race back to Williams his first podium since George Russell's in Belgium in 2021. Fifth, Albon equals his result from Miami and allows Williams to clearly move away to 5th place in the Constructors' standings, especially as his teammate Carlos Sainz (8th) is also in the points.

The Madrilenian held off Isack Hadjar at the end of the race, who ultimately scored the two points for 9th place: a positive result, but almost disappointing for the Frenchman, who had found himself fifth for a time after having contained Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton with great maturity for most of the race.

If he accompanied him on the fifth line at the start, Pierre Gasly finished much further back. The Norman made a mistake in the first laps by going into the gravel trap while trying to defend against Charles Leclerc. Relegated to 14th place, he was never able to enter the top 10 again: a real disappointment after a very good start to the weekend. But the biggest failure of the Grand Prix is ​​to be attributed toAston MartinThe British, so impressive in qualifying (Alonso 5th, double Q3), had a bad race and did not score a single point. The counter of Fernando Alonso is still stuck at zero…

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F1 – Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix (Imola)

The classification of the race