RATING THE ROOKIES: How the new kids on the block are faring in their first F1 season so far

A gaggle of rookies joined the Formula 1 grid this year as all but two of the F1 teams opted to shake up their driver line up for 2025.

Before the season kicked off, we asked F1 TV lead commentator and F2 expert Alex Jacques for his lowdown on the new crop of rookies joining the top tier. And now, as the drivers and teams rest up in the summer break, we asked Alex to assess how each of the rookies is doing, midway through their maiden campaign…

Andrea Kimi Antonelli – Mercedes

• Best finish: P3
• Total points: 64

Stand-out moment so far:

In Miami, his Sprint Pole made him the youngest ever pole-sitter in F1 history at just 18 years and 251 days old.

How has he impressed?

He was able to quickly get to grips with tracks he’d never raced at in North America like Miami, where he out-qualified team mate George Russell for both the Sprint and the Grand Prix itself.

In Montreal, he consistently ran at the front for the first time, assuredly finishing on the podium while becoming the third youngest visitor to the rostrum in F1 history as he did so.

What does he need to work on in the second half of the season?

Finding a way to access his true raw speed again. Too many moments have sapped his confidence in the first 14 rounds and observers who know Kimi’s inner strengths as a driver say he is not close to the limit of his natural pace behind the wheel.

Despite a difficult weekend results wise, Budapest was actually a step forward for his confidence behind the wheel and he’ll have to build on that to rediscover the limit.

Verdict: Flashes of brilliance need to become more frequent but it would be unfair to really judge until the end of his first full season.

Oliver Bearman – Haas

• Best finish: P8
• Total points: 8

Stand-out moment so far:

His brilliant overtakes through the field in Shanghai were thrilling but reaching Q3 on a first visit to Suzuka, qualifying eight places higher than his team mate Esteban Ocon underlined how much talent he has.

How has he impressed?

His one-lap speed has been outstanding at times, and his Qualifying record stands at 7-7 in the head-to-head against a Grand Prix winner. Bearman also has shown better race pace than his points return suggests.

What does he need to work on in the second half of the season?

Cutting out basic errors which are ruining his weekend. The red flag penalty at Silverstone spoiled a chance of a top-eight start on a day where a shock podium was open for the midfield. A team like Haas can’t afford for such big points to be lost in that manner.

Verdict: Enough pace to encourage both team and driver but early points after the summer break would provide reassurance to both that he’s on the right track.

Gabriel Bortoleto - Sauber

• Best finish: P6
• Total points: 14

Stand-out moment so far:

The last Grand Prix! An outstanding drive just 14 Sundays in, taking a step forward in Q3 for the first time when it counted with a career-best Qualifying and then looking really strong throughout the race to claim P6.

How has he impressed?

In Qualifying. Few would have predicted he’d be ahead in the head-to-head battle with one of Formula 1’s Qualifying kings of recent years but he leads 8-6 on merit over Nico Hulkenberg.

Also his overall ability to work with his experienced team mate has impressed those at Hinwil. Converting big chances into points in Austria and Hungary has been another big plus.

What does he need to work on in the second half of the season?

Repeating the improvement in Q3. Now he knows how to improve in the final Qualifying session (as he did in Hungary), repeating this could make a huge difference to Sauber’s hopes in the Constructors’ Championship.

Verdict: It’s wonderful that the reigning F2 champion is on the grid and now looks like he has the car to show his talent.

Jack Doohan / Franco Colapinto - Alpine

• Best finish: Doohan P13 / Colapinto P13
• Total points: 0

Stand-out moment so far:

Both drivers have had occasions where they out-qualified Pierre Gasly in their time with the team – and Gasly is no slouch having turned heads by making seven Q3 appearances in what is the 10th fastest car on the grid.

How have they impressed?

In truth, Alpine have struggled to make the second seat work this year. Jack Doohan started his first season in F1 with a media day full of questions about being replaced and two big crashes in Melbourne and Suzuka.

When he was axed just two months into the season, he had just out-paced his highly-rated French team mate for the first time, in Miami.

What does Colapinto need to work on in the second half of the season?

For Franco Colapinto, Doohan’s demotion meant a second incomplete season in F1, with no pre-season testing with the new car before making his debut.

He’s also been learning the team with a new-to-the-role race engineer, which isn’t always the easiest for a driver (see Gasly at Red Bull in 2019 and Liam Lawson in 2025).

But Colapinto only has one more race weekend before he returns to venues he knows from last season. If he can use the experience to improve in Qualifying he could yet turn round a tough campaign with points finishes.

Verdict: Strange handling of the seat has left two worthy drivers fighting with one hand behind their back.

Isack Hadjar - Racing Bulls

• Best finish: P6
• Total points: 22

Stand-out moment so far:

The Monaco weekend blended speed, skill, and tactical awareness to claim a fine P6.

How has he impressed?

I feared for Hadjar post-Melbourne. His genuinely rapid pace has never been in doubt but key errors at pressure moments in F3 and F2 made me worry about how he would recover in the spotlight of F1 after spinning out on the formation lap in Australia.

But his answer was a superb run of five points-scoring finishes in his first 10 F1 weekends. Furthermore, with so many great laps on Practice Fridays there’s a lot to suggest there is a real foundation to be built upon in his career once he truly masters car set-up.

What does he need to work on in the second half of the season?

Not getting lost in the second half of the season slump that has affected the Faenza-based team so many times in their history.

Verdict: Rookie of the half-year isn’t a thing – but if it was, he’d win it. A great start to life in F1.

Liam Lawson - Racing Bulls

• Best finish: P6
• Total points: 20

Stand-out moment so far:

Austria, where he scored a career best sixth place with a drive of total assurance – which was especially impressive given everything he’d been through earlier in the season.

How has he impressed?

Bouncing back from a career humiliation after demotion from Red Bull, which would have finished lesser competitors. Lawson seemed stunned for a few races before rediscovering the strong race pace which had been the bed-rock of his promotion in the first place. Since Austria he has been in contention for points regularly.

What does he need to work on in the second half of the season?

Qualifying pace has got to improve, as he himself has admitted. Being 9-3 down to Hadjar in the head-to-head is more of a testament to the Frenchman than a mark against Lawson but that isn’t sustainable in the cut throat world of the Red Bull teams.

Verdict: He’s improved well in both Qualifying and races in the run into the summer break. Stronger Qualifying performances could see the battle between Racing Bull drivers intensifying.