The Paddock Shakes: Alpine’s Coup d’État
If you thought Formula 1’s off-track drama had peaked with the Hamilton-to-Ferrari saga, think again. The Alpine team, that perennial soap opera in blue, has just delivered a plot twist worthy of a Le Carré novel. In the space of 24 hours, Team Principal Oliver Oakes resigned with immediate effect, and Flavio Briatore—yes, that Flavio—has returned to the helm.
As if that wasn’t enough, rookie Jack Doohan has been benched in favor of Franco Colapinto for at least the next five races.
For those keeping score at home, that’s a team boss out, a controversial fixer in, and a driver swap all before the European leg of the season. The only thing missing is a cameo from Fernando Alonso, but give it time.
Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes rookie, on the challenge of adapting to F1’s relentless pace:
Every weekend is learning and experience and more confidence with the car as well. So really, really happy with how every weekend I’m able to play a lot more with the car and trying to explore the limit as well.
The Alpine shake-up is more than just a headline. It’s a symptom of a team that’s lost its way since the Renault rebrand. Oakes’ departure follows a string of underwhelming results and boardroom intrigue, with Briatore’s return signaling a back-to-the-future approach.
For those with long memories, Briatore’s last stint in F1 ended with the infamous “Crashgate” scandal. Now, he’s back, older, perhaps wiser, and certainly no less controversial.
For Colapinto, the Argentine prodigy, this is a golden opportunity. His stand-in run for Williams last year was a mixed bag—flashes of brilliance in Baku, rookie errors in Brazil—but Alpine is desperate for fresh energy.
The question is whether this is a genuine youth movement or just another panic move from a team addicted to chaos.
Watch: LIVE REACTION: Franco Colapinto Replaces Jack Doohan (YouTube)
REACTION! What is actually happening at Alpine? | F1 Show (YouTube)
Red Bull: The Empire Wobbles
Meanwhile, over at Red Bull, the empire is showing cracks. After years of Verstappen-led dominance, 2025 finds the team third in the Constructors’ standings, 141 points adrift of McLaren. Verstappen himself is 32 points behind Oscar Piastri in the Drivers’ Championship.
The RB21, once the class of the field, now looks merely mortal.
The latest twist? Yuki Tsunoda, promoted to the senior team, is settling in with surprising composure.
Paul Monaghan, Red Bull Chief Engineer offered rare praise:
He seems able to avoid the intimidation of being Max’s team mate at the moment, so that’s really good. I’m impressed. He’s got more than a spine to him.
But the real bombshell is financial. Red Bull has ended its $150 million partnership with crypto exchange Bybit, a deal that once seemed as unbreakable as Verstappen’s pole streak.
The team has scrambled to fill the gap with new sponsors, but the optics are clear: the Red Bull juggernaut is no longer invincible, on or off the track.
Red Bull ends $150m partnership with Bybit (FanAmp)
Red Bull praise Tsunoda for avoiding intimidation (Formula1.com)
Hamilton’s Ferrari Gamble: Magic or Mirage?
Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari was supposed to be the story of the season. The seven-time champion, clad in red, chasing an eighth title and immortality. The reality? A mixed bag.
Hamilton has shown flashes of brilliance—dominating the Shanghai Sprint—but has struggled to adapt to the SF-25’s quirks.
Toto Wolff, ever the diplomat, insists the “magic” is still there:
I very much believe that it’s still there. If he aligns all his performance contributors and feels he is in the right space and the car is to his liking, he will be stellar. I have no doubt.
But Ferrari is a different beast from Mercedes. Charles Leclerc, now the established team leader, is no pushover. The intra-team battle is as much psychological as it is mechanical.
If Hamilton can’t find his groove soon, the tifosi may start to wonder if they’ve bought a legend past his sell-by date.
Wolff insists Hamilton magic ‘is still there’ (Formula1.com)
Hamilton RESPONDS to Ferrari Drama! (YouTube)
McLaren Ascendant: Piastri’s Coming of Age
While the old guard stumbles, McLaren is resurgent. Oscar Piastri, once criticized for chewing through his tyres faster than a teenager through a bag of crisps, has transformed into a championship contender.
Team Principal Andrea Stella credits hard work and engineering collaboration:
Looking at the way Oscar is mastering and managing tyre degradation at the moment, no way that this improvement would come simply from the car. This is testament to the quality of the work done by Oscar and the team around him.
Piastri’s improved tyre management has allowed him to match, and occasionally surpass, Lando Norris over a race distance. The papaya squad leads both championships, and for the first time since the Button-Hamilton era, McLaren looks like a genuine title threat.
The one improvement that’s helped Piastri fight for 2025 F1 title (Autosport)
Chinese GP 2025 Highlights
Mercedes: The Antonelli Experiment
Mercedes, post-Hamilton, is a team in transition. George Russell has stepped up as the de facto leader, but all eyes are on Kimi Antonelli, the Italian wunderkind parachuted into a top seat at just 18.
Antonelli’s rookie season has been a rollercoaster—pole in the Miami Sprint, mistakes in Melbourne, flashes of raw speed everywhere.
Max Verstappen, no stranger to teenage debuts, offered this assessment:
When you just start in Formula 1, there’s so much to learn and to already be at this pace is very impressive. But I’m not surprised at the same time. He’ll only get better, to be honest. It’s as simple as that.
Mercedes sits second in the Constructors’, but the real story is Antonelli’s learning curve. If he can iron out the rookie errors, the Silver Arrows could yet play spoiler in the title fight.
What’s behind an F1 breakthrough that’s impressed Verstappen: Kimi Antonelli (The Race)
Cadillac’s American Dream
The Miami Grand Prix wasn’t just a race; it was a coming-out party for Cadillac, who will join the grid as F1’s 11th team in 2026. The glitzy launch, complete with American bravado and private equity backing, signals a new era for the sport’s U.S. ambitions.
Cadillac’s entry is more than a marketing exercise. With Andretti’s failed bid still fresh, the General Motors brand brings both technical muscle and commercial clout.
The team is already courting drivers—Sergio Pérez among them—and promising a “fresh, bold and new” approach.
We want to be fresh, bold and new – Cadillac chiefs on their plans for F1 (Formula1.com)
Sergio Perez’s options that could yield him an F1 seat in 2026 (Motorsport.com)
The 2025 Rulebook: Tweaks and Tensions
No F1 season would be complete without a raft of new regulations. For 2025, the FIA has tweaked the technical and sporting rules in the name of fairness and spectacle:
- Minimum driver weight increased to 82 kg, with car minimum weight up to 800 kg.
- Mandatory driver cooling systems for hot races.
- DRS slot gap reduced, making overtakes a touch harder (and, one hopes, braver).
- Fastest lap point abolished—no more late-race pit stops for glory.
- Young driver practice: Each team must run a rookie in two FP1 sessions per car.
- Testing restrictions tightened to curb costs and level the playing field.
If you’re nostalgic for the days when teams could test until the cows came home, you’re not alone. But in the modern era, cost caps and controlled chaos are the order of the day.
What rules and regulations are new for the 2025 F1 season (news.gp)
The Grid: Youth, Experience, and the Great Unknown
The 2025 grid is a fascinating blend of youth and experience. Hamilton and Alonso are still here, defying time and logic. Antonelli, Colapinto, and Hadjar represent the new wave.
Verstappen, Leclerc, Norris, and Piastri are now the established stars.
But as history teaches us—see Alesi, Jean; Montoya, Juan Pablo; or even Vettel, Sebastian—talent alone is never enough. The right car, the right team, and a dash of luck are still the ultimate currency.
