The championship hasn't been very interesting so far, with Kimi Antonelli grabbing the lead early and refusing to let anyone touch it. That young Italian has made sure we have little to get excited about in the title fight, and even if his chances of clinching it in Austin are slim, many wouldn't mind if it happened sooner rather than later to silence fake comeback narratives from George Russell or others.
Still, it is a fascinating season to observe. Does Max Verstappen's latest win make you question everything you thought about this year? After all, it seemed clear that Mercedes had clawed its way back to dominance with the regulation changes.
They simply did it again, replicating 2014 by building the best power unit and chassis, cruising towards both championships and looking like favourites for the next few years until rivals catch up. How long did it take back then? Until 2017 for Sebastian Vettel to mount a challenge, and truly until 2021 when Red Bull and Max Verstappen finally struck back.
Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen
Given Mercedes's early summer dominance, assuming another era of Wolff and co domination wasn't unreasonable. But it's no longer so clear. Verstappen's back-to-back wins offer an alternative theory. Their early speed was undeniably impressive, featuring a benchmark power unit and a solid W17 car.
However, Mercedes wasn't locked in the 2025 title fight, allowing them to focus entirely on 2026, unlike Red Bull and McLaren who pushed until the very end. Works team status also gave Mercedes an initial edge over McLaren in mastering the new power units, an advantage that has nearly vanished as McLaren progressed through the summer.
Max Verstappen sits 4th in the drivers' championship standings with 221 points.
Source: Motorsport
