Verstappen unstoppable in Imola F1 thriller while Lawson misses points

The sun bathed the hills of Imola for the 2025 F1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

On a circuit notorious for its narrow, unforgiving layout and limited overtaking opportunities, strategy and tyre management were always going to be key. What unfolded was a thrilling display of racecraft, drama, and razor-sharp decision-making.

From pole, Oscar Piastri had done everything right off the line. The McLaren driver hugged the inside into Turn 1 but Max Verstappen was relentless.

As the two surged out of the opening chicane wheel to wheel, the reigning champion braved it out on the inside of Piastri. He seized the lead with a bold and clinical move before the field had even settled.

Behind them, the early laps delivered instant action. Esteban Ocon came in for an early pit stop as early as Lap 2, switching to the hard tyres. Further back, Racing Bulls teammates Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar found themselves in contrasting fortunes. Lawson held firm in 15th, while Hadjar lost ground after a sluggish start.

Then came a dramatic clash between Pierre Gasly and Charles Leclerc. The two danced on the edge of disaster as they fought for position. Gasly blinked first running wide into the gravel and tumbling to 14th.

It was already a difficult day for some. Yuki Tsunoda, starting from the pit lane after a heavy crash in qualifying, was visibly fighting with his Red Bull car.

Alpine’s newest addition, Franco Colapinto, back in the seat replacing Jack Doohan, was holding his own. That was despite a Q1 shunt of his own six laps in, but he had only conceded one place.

McLaren’s Lando Norris began to close on George Russell as the laps ticked by. His DRS gave him the edge, and on Lap 11, he finally muscled past the Mercedes into third.

Up front, Verstappen and Piastri were already in another time zone, stretching their legs as tyre wear rapidly became the central storyline.

The mediums, it turned out, were falling off quicker than expected. Russell, now fading fast, came in earlier than Mercedes had hoped. Ferrari judged Leclerc’s first pit stop perfectly, allowing him to come out of the pits ahead of both Alonso and Russell.

When Piastri came in on Lap 14, it was clear that teams were scrambling to keep up with the evolving tyre landscape.

Even the pit lane wasn’t without drama. Flames licked the front brakes of Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin as he exited the pits, the heavy braking zones around Imola taking their toll.

Meanwhile, Verstappen, Norris, Albon, Hadjar, and Colapinto remained out on their mediums, playing the long game.

Piastri rejoined in traffic and found himself behind Tsunoda, who had strict team orders from Red Bull to hold him off.

“This is Max’s race. Hold him off as long as possible,” says Tsunoda’s team engineer.

Piastri had other ideas and wasn’t waiting around.

He dispatched Tsunoda within a lap, then Colapinto and Bearman in quick succession. If anyone doubted whether Imola offered chances to pass, Piastri was rewriting the narrative.

On Lap 23, the strategic picture began to crystallise. Verstappen led comfortably with a nine-second cushion over Norris. Piastri, now on the hard compound, was flying through the pack.

The question now was not if Verstappen would win but whether he could pit and still emerge ahead of the charging McLaren.

Colapinto was the next to pit, hoping to stretch his hard tyres to the flag. Moments later, Piastri was past Hadjar and Antonelli, putting him fourth. Norris, meanwhile, came in on Lap 29 but his hopes were dashed almost instantly.

Just one lap later, Esteban Ocon’s Haas stopped at Turn 7, triggering a Virtual Safety Car. It was a lifeline for Red Bull and a gut punch for McLaren, who had just pitted Norris.

Verstappen pitted under the VSC and lost minimal time, retaining his lead. Piastri and a swarm of others followed suit—Hadjar, Antonelli, Leclerc, Sainz, Russell—turning the pit lane into organised chaos.

As the VSC ended and racing resumed, the Top 10 order had been shuffled around. Verstappen led Norris, Albon, Piastri, Hadjar, Antonelli, Hamilton, Alonso, Leclerc and Stroll. The Red Bull driver wasted no time reasserting control, setting a blistering 1:20.330 to extend his lead once again.

There was no shortage of action in the midfield either. Tsunoda and Sainz clashed wheels in a tense scrap for 13th, the contact noted but ultimately chalked up as a racing incident. Lance Stroll’s pace vanished as quickly as it had arrived, dropping five places in two laps.

But all eyes were on Piastri once more. With 15 laps to go, he reeled in Albon and passed him for third. His pace didn’t stop there—he clocked the new fastest lap of the race with a 1:19.231.

Then, a twist: Kimi Antonelli slowed and pulled off track, triggering a full Safety Car on Lap 50. Suddenly, Verstappen’s 18-second advantage evaporated.

The leaders scrambled into the pits once more. Verstappen made the jump, and Norris followed, but a sluggish 4.4-second stop cost McLaren dearly. Piastri, who stayed out, now sat between his teammate and the race leader.

As a large portion of the field pitted, the Racing Bulls team took a gamble and kept the Kiwi out on worn tyres.

The restart came with nine laps to go. Verstappen was clinical, immediately breaking clear of the DRS range. But the battle behind was about to ignite. On Lap 58, Norris lunged past Piastri into Turn 1, reclaiming second and setting his focus on chasing down Verstappen.

Further back, Leclerc and Albon came together in a tense battle for fourth. Albon went off into the gravel and dropped to sixth. Hamilton, meanwhile, was finding rhythm, slicing past Leclerc and then Albon in quick succession to claim fourth.

Leclerc was told to hand the position back to Albon to avoid a penalty for the earlier incident, but it was too late to change the narrative at the front.

Verstappen crossed the line with a flourish, claiming his fourth straight win at Imola but only his second win of the season. He was also voted driver of the day and finished the race with the fastest lap.

Behind him, McLaren celebrated a double podium—Norris in second, Piastri in third. For the championship leader, it was another crucial step forward in what is shaping into an extraordinary campaign.

“It was a tough race; not many things went our way today. Obviously, turn one wasn’t great for me, then we decided to go one way with the strategy, and I don’t think it was the right way in the end, but at that point, it seemed like a decent idea.

“Then, after that, the VSC and safety car were poorly timed for us. To come home third is still okay, obviously, but not quite the afternoon we were looking for,” said Piastri

Piastri continues to lead the driver’s championship with 146 points, ahead of Norris with 133 points. Verstappen closes the gap in third place with 124 points.

The double podium for McLaren extended their lead in the 2025 Constructors Championship to 312 points. Red Bull jumped up to second place with 157 points, while Mercedes dropped to third with 151 points.

Hamilton’s late charge earned him fourth, his best race result with Ferrari so far, ahead of a resurgent Albon.

Leclerc, Russell, Sainz, Hadjar, and Tsunoda completed the points. Lawson finished a frustrated 14th after a weekend that never quite came together.