I do know you’re all already fascinated with 2026 and what the brand new rules have in retailer, however the holidays are about custom (and, you realize, a little bit of planning), so it’s the purpose within the yr once I prefer to be judgmental about all the groups and replicate on how their respective seasons stack up. Selecting out each good and unhealthy facets for every staff, the scoring is clearly by no means contentious…
We have organized the groups in alphabetical order. Yesterday we covered all the teams from Alpine to McLaren; at the moment we shut it out with the remainder of the sphere, beginning with…
MERCEDES
Poles: 2
Wins: 2
Constructors’ championship place: 2nd (469 factors)
The nice: Mercedes improved to second within the constructors’ championship, and that didn’t look all that seemingly a yr in the past. George Russell was as soon as once more a standout performer and stays able to combat for a title if given the equipment, as he took his solely two reasonable probabilities to win a race this yr.
Kimi Antonelli additionally developed impressively and began to repay the religion proven in him at such a younger age, along with his performances in direction of the top of the season significantly eye-catching. Credit score must go for Mercedes for taking the stress off the Italian, because it does for constructing a greater all-round automotive that didn’t undergo the lows of 2024. Solely as soon as all season did it fail to attain factors.
The unhealthy: Making the automotive extra constant additionally appeared to iron out the peaks the staff beforehand loved, and there was a misstep in improvement when it got here to the suspension mid-season. Toto Wolff admitted the rear suspension tripped the staff up, regardless of the sturdy weekend in Canada, and it didn’t keep on the automotive all yr.
With the identical energy unit as McLaren, there was additionally nonetheless a transparent deficit in efficiency and though the rules will change subsequent yr, it’s a worrying signal that Mercedes by no means obtained on prime of the bottom impact vehicles throughout the previous 4 seasons.
RATING: 7/10
Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty photographs
RACING BULLS
Poles: 0
Wins: 0
Constructors’ championship place: 6th (92 factors)
The nice: In contrast to Pink Bull, Racing Bulls simply is aware of methods to construct a automotive that its drivers might deal with on the vast majority of circuits. Much more consistency than there was in 2024, even with one other mid-season driver change. Maybe helped by the truth that swap between Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson occurred so early, Racing Bulls supplied the setting for the New Zealander to search out his toes once more. and nurtured an especially spectacular expertise in Isack Hadjar.
It wasn’t simply the drivers that had been altering, although, with Laurent Mekies transferring as much as Pink Bull and Alan Permane taking over the staff principal’s job with aplomb. It was a seamless transition, as evidenced by the superb podium for Hadjar in Zandvoort coming simply three races into Permane’s management.
The unhealthy: There have been nonetheless a couple of missed alternatives, with the staff shedding its approach just a little for a brief run of races from Singapore onwards. In all probability unfair to level this particularly on the staff (slightly than Pink Bull itself as staff proprietor), however the lack of stability across the driver line-up additionally by no means helps create continuity.
Hadjar was outscored 18-13 by Lawson over the ultimate third of the season, maybe suggesting extra improvement time wouldn’t harm him be best-placed to succeed when given a Pink Bull seat in future, however the fixed have to justify the staff’s function as a house for junior drivers means he’s subsequent into the fireplace alongside Max Verstappen after only one yr, and Arvid Lindblad – one other nice expertise who didn’t essentially want dashing – is in.
RATING: 7.5/10
Mark Thompson/Getty Photographs
RED BULL
Poles: 8
Wins: 8
Constructors’ championship place: 3rd (451 factors)
The nice: The turnaround from Monza onwards was spectacular. Pink Bull picked up two wins when given the prospect with Max Verstappen within the first a part of the yr, however when the automotive was upgraded in Italy it went on a tear that so practically produced the most important championship comeback ever seen.
Execution was additionally glorious on Verstappen’s facet of the storage, profiting from any mistake from McLaren because the stress grew, and getting inside two factors of the title. Resolving most of the automotive points from the earlier 12 months can also be a significant constructive, and shouldn’t be neglected amid all the off-track turmoil the staff confronted.
The unhealthy: The primary a part of the yr was so inconsistent, and when the automotive was unhealthy it was actually unhealthy. The dealing with of Liam Lawson was appalling – each selecting him over Tsunoda after which giving him simply two races on such a troublesome facet of the storage – and the second driver downside was by no means resolved.
Christian Horner’s departure was adopted by Helmut Marko’s on the finish of the season and confirmed up the management issues that had been being confronted, and finally the efficiency for the primary a part of the season prevented a fifth straight title going Verstappen’s approach. As spectacular because the restoration was, it nonetheless fell simply quick, and could possibly be its last likelihood for a short time except Pink Bull surprises with its debut energy unit subsequent yr.
RATING: 7/10
SAUBER
Poles: 0
Wins: 0
Constructors’ championship place: 9th (70 factors)
The nice: What might have been a write-off yr as Sauber transitioned from Stake Kick Sauber to Audi was something however, with some very encouraging indicators. The beginning of the yr seemed comparatively bleak regardless of Nico Hulkenberg’s seventh place in Melbourne, however then got here a really spectacular improve in Barcelona and the complete complexion modified.
Not solely did it make Sauber much more aggressive, it confirmed the automotive improvement division is working successfully, boding nicely for its future. Third at Silverstone was a superb outcome for Hulkenberg – not solely a long-overdue podium for the German but in addition for the staff – and Gabriel Bortoleto seemed a star within the making for a lot of the yr.
The unhealthy: The begin to the season left Sauber with an excessive amount of to do for a greater championship place. There have been solely 4 race weekends once they failed to attain after introducing the Barcelona improve, however scoring simply six factors within the first third of the yr was expensive.
Bortoleto additionally struggled within the latter a part of the yr, significantly with two crashes throughout his house race weekend in Brazil, as he scored only a solitary level after the European season ended. That was only a reminder that he’s a rookie and can enhance additional with time, however Hulkenberg additionally had some qualifying points that can want rectifying.
RATING: 6.5/10
WILLIAMS
Poles: 0
Wins: 0
Constructors’ championship place: 5th (137 factors)
The nice: Williams replicated the job it did with its 2024 automotive, solely this time with out the load points that held it again a yr in the past. Fast out of the field, a aggressive automotive was put to full use by a sensational Alex Albon for the primary two thirds of the season – together with three top-five finishes within the first seven races – and P5 was virtually a formality by the summer time.
Carlos Sainz was all the time going to be a terrific addition, however after a tricky begin he additionally confirmed his worth within the latter a part of the yr, with two glorious podiums and a 3rd place in a Dash in Austin. The automotive remained fast on sure tracks even with out upgrades, and a few spectacular engineering was backed up by faultless driving from the Spaniard, at a time when Albon was struggling for consistency.
The unhealthy: It did take some time for Sainz to get the outcomes he and the automotive had been able to, and though that was partly to be anticipated given the swap in groups, it was additionally partly resulting from poor execution at occasions within the first half of the yr.
Albon’s drop-off in type after the top of the European season was additionally an actual shock, and extra regarding was the truth that he and Williams couldn’t flip it round by the top of the yr. There was additionally the double-disqualification from qualifying in Singapore that might have been expensive, and infrequently did each side of the storage click on on the identical weekend.
RATING: 8/10
