Official 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix Thread ***SPOILERS***

[Piginapoke]

Last stop before the summer break, and we re in Hungary- let s hope for a more exciting race than Spa, which promised a lot but didn’t quite deliver. Last year you may remember Lando s race engineer pleading with him to give the lead back to Piastri for his first win, and a McLaren 1-2 seems a certainty again this year.

Hamilton will want a better weekend (particularly qualifying) and Antonelli will need a confidence boost before the break, as he appears to be all at sea. It will be interesting to see how the upgraded Ferrari performs at a slower circuit.

Here s to a great race. Lando always goes well here and is my tip for the win.

Date(s): Friday 1 August to Sunday 3 August 2025.

UK Broadcast Timings (and track time)

All sessions are live on Sky F1. Channel 4 is showing highlights of all competitive sessions.





2024 Highlights: Piastri s 1stwin, Max and Lewis accident and Max/RB radio meltdown

https://youtu.be/YJ0NYHONwts?si=ytoZJNIPNx33ghTc

Tyres:

Soft compounds C3, C4, C5



2024 Result:

Edited by Piginapoke on Tuesday 29th July 11:57

[Sandpit Steve]

We just had a three-week break, now two races on the bounce and then a four-week break. One struggles to understand the schedule sometimes.

Thanks PiaP for the continual efforts on these threads.

Another McLaren 1-2 this weekend?

[Piginapoke]

Sandpit Steve said:

We just had a three-week break, now two races on the bounce and then a four-week break. One struggles to understand the schedule sometimes.

Thanks PiaP for the continual efforts on these threads.

Another McLaren 1-2 this weekend?

Yep Steve- if it's hot, even more domination I think. Thank God Zak is letting them race.

[ajprice]

Just seen these on Autosport Facebook. Piastri has had 59 race starts, he's finished 41 races in a row. His last retirement was USA 2023, his last finish out of the points was Miami 2024. Hamilton has a 48 finish streak, Verstappen 43.



The last time Verstappen finished 3 races in a row off the podium was 2019.

[Sandpit Steve]

Piginapoke said:

Sandpit Steve said:

We just had a three-week break, now two races on the bounce and then a four-week break. One struggles to understand the schedule sometimes.

Thanks PiaP for the continual efforts on these threads.

Another McLaren 1-2 this weekend?

Yep Steve- if it's hot, even more domination I think. Thank God Zak is letting them race.

Yes I don’t particularly mind one dominant car, so long as the two of them are allowed to race without much interference from the team.

As someone pointed out on Twitter, the last time McLaren had six 1-2s in a season was 1988. Now that was a pretty good season to watch. More recently, 2015 and 2016 were pretty good too.

The Verstappen years and the Schumacher years were the boring ones, knowing the week before who was going to be 1/10 at the bookies to win the race.

[MontyPythonX]

Piginapoke said:

Last stop before the summer break

I thought we just had the summer break, before Spa?

[Piginapoke]

Sandpit Steve said:

Yes I don t particularly mind one dominant car, so long as the two of them are allowed to race without much interference from the team.

As someone pointed out on Twitter, the last time McLaren had six 1-2s in a season was 1988. Now that was a pretty good season to watch. More recently, 2015 and 2016 were pretty good too.

The Verstappen years and the Schumacher years were the boring ones, knowing the week before who was going to be 1/10 at the bookies to win the race.

The Hamilton/Bottas years were the low point for me- dull as ditchwater

[PRO5T]

Piginapoke said:

The Hamilton/Bottas years were the low point for me- dull as ditchwater

Really? Those battles against Seb in the Ferrari in '18 & '19 were awesome. The two McLaren's are operating on a really high level, with only Oscar really having a 'mare so far with his unlucky spin into the grass in Australia (which Lando got away with).

I have a feeling before too long one of them is going to have a clusterfk, getting caught out by a mechanical failure, or a qually goof or coming off the road.

After Oscar's penalty and Oz spin the cards should fall to Lando for his turn but F1 rarely works like that eh?

[Sandpit Steve]

Piginapoke said:

Sandpit Steve said:

Yes I don t particularly mind one dominant car, so long as the two of them are allowed to race without much interference from the team.

As someone pointed out on Twitter, the last time McLaren had six 1-2s in a season was 1988. Now that was a pretty good season to watch. More recently, 2015 and 2016 were pretty good too.

The Verstappen years and the Schumacher years were the boring ones, knowing the week before who was going to be 1/10 at the bookies to win the race.

The Hamilton/Bottas years were the low point for me- dull as ditchwater

But at least the team gave them the same opportunity, even if one driver was getting better results than the other.

It wasn’t until ‘21 that they used Valtteri as a test driver.

[Derek Smith]

Thanks yet again, PiaP, for the effort you put in for us. Greatly appreciated.

In 88 the season seemed exciting because of the battle between the two great drivers. There was even the somewhat unexpected, and rewarding, Ferrari win in Italy and Monza. It was so close, with Prost getting seven wins out of the 15 races that the McL won. (I've just checked the stats as I didn't want to force anyone into having to point out a mistake. I know how they must hate it.) And seven second places. Senna had a disqualification as well. Strange season.

This season is not such a walk-over despite the car being almost as dominant at most circuits. Yet this season - so far - has given us some thrilling races with lots to talk about afterwards. (I've said it now!) I don't see the two drivers as comparable to the Senna/Prost duo with regards ability, but they are as close. Oddly enough, I'd love to see more cars at the front, as long as a McL driver won of course. The RB has gone from being the fastest car after the McL to challenging at Spa. Maybe not a walk-over for the remaining races?

[White-Noise]

Thanks for the thread as always piap.

As someone posted above about how Oscar is so good at finishing it's amazing he's almost already at the top for most finishes in a row. He has this skill plus his ability to really be at the front from quali and also to race to finish at the top he really becomes the complete package of fast but also consistent. He's going to be hard to match.

In another season with a different team mate like a number 2, lando would be running away with it but he has a tough ask, not having a webber or Perez etc alongside him.

[Jasandjules]

I can't really see much other than a 1-2 for McLaren. As long as they both run a good quali set up. The interesting questions will be Red Bull and Ferrari, will the Ferrari suspension work here? Seems like it should, but who knows.

[90CHPAXL]

I’m going for a wild and godly Max pole, where he will make it stick around this difficult to overtake circuit. Piastri the best of the McLaren chaps, with Ferrari to start strong, and guff it with a call/cock-up

[Still Mulling]

Thanks as always, PiaP.

I bet you're looking forward to the summer break: your RSI must be flaring with this year's schedule!

A standard papaya podium, I reckon, with Albon making a seemingly bizarre strategy call stick to nab third.

Any hope of a wild 2026 line-up announcement to throw a cat among the summer-holiday pigeons?

[Sandpit Steve]

Still Mulling said:

Thanks as always, PiaP.

I bet you're looking forward to the summer break: your RSI must be flaring with this year's schedule!

A standard papaya podium, I reckon, with Albon making a seemingly bizarre strategy call stick to nab third.

Any hope of a wild 2026 line-up announcement to throw a cat among the summer-holiday pigeons?

Marko is insistent that Max isn’t going anywhere for next year. Which probably means the silly season starts this weekend!

[Still Mulling]

Sandpit Steve said:

Marko is insistent that Max isn't going anywhere for next year. Which probably means the silly season starts this weekend!

BBC Q&A has just had Benson say the same.

[MustangGT]

Still Mulling said:

Sandpit Steve said:

Marko is insistent that Max isn't going anywhere for next year. Which probably means the silly season starts this weekend!

BBC Q&A has just had Benson say the same.

If, as some people claim, Max's contract had a performance clause that stated he could leave at the end of 2025 if he was lower than 3rd in the WDC by the end of the Hungarian race weekend, he will be unable to activate it. He cannot be lower than 3rd even if George wins and Max scores no points.

[Derek Smith]

MustangGT said:

If, as some people claim, Max's contract had a performance clause that stated he could leave at the end of 2025 if he was lower than 3rd in the WDC by the end of the Hungarian race weekend, he will be unable to activate it. He cannot be lower than 3rd even if George wins and Max scores no points.

You can always buy out a contract. The FIA is a business.

[UKsandman]

PRO5T said:

The two McLaren's are operating on a really high level, with only Oscar really having a 'mare so far with his unlucky spin into the grass in Australia (which Lando got away with).

I have a feeling before too long one of them is going to have a clusterfk, getting caught out by a mechanical failure, or a qually goof or coming off the road.

After Oscar's penalty and Oz spin the cards should fall to Lando for his turn but F1 rarely works like that eh?

Are you forgetting about Lando driving into the back of Piastri and DNFing in Canada?

[MustangGT]

Derek Smith said:

MustangGT said:

If, as some people claim, Max's contract had a performance clause that stated he could leave at the end of 2025 if he was lower than 3rd in the WDC by the end of the Hungarian race weekend, he will be unable to activate it. He cannot be lower than 3rd even if George wins and Max scores no points.

You can always buy out a contract. The FIA is a business.

You can, but it could make it exponentially more expensive if not a free agent.