Max Verstappen smashed the opposition at the F1 2025 Emilia Romagna GP as he romped home ahead of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to breathe life back into his title ambitions, earning the Driver of the Day honours in the process too.
The defending world champion produced one of the overtakes of the season on Lap 1 to snatch the lead of the race, before quickly kicking on and open up a gap to Piastri’s McLaren behind.
From there, he continued to manage his race and edged away from the chasing pack as a shrewd call from Red Bull to ignore the tantalising allure of the two-stop strategy paid dividends later on.
Both Norris and Piastri pitted before a virtual safety car was deployed, which gave the 27-year-old the chance to save 18 seconds in the pits and ultimately handed him the win…
Until a full safety car was deployed and bunched the field up, but he kept his composure and nailed the restart to make sure neither of the McLaren drivers could mount a challenge.
He sprinted to the line and set a fastest lap in the process, winning by 6.1 seconds to claim his second victory of the season as well as being voted Driver of the Day at the F1 2025 Emilia Romagna GP.
More from the Singapore GP
Catch up with Total Motorsport's latest Singapore GP coverage, including Max Verstappen's victory at Marina Bay, Ferrari's costly strategy gamble, the full race classification, and the updated 2026 Formula 1 Drivers' and Constructors' Championship standings.
“The VSC was quite handy to pit,” Verstappen told F1 TV. “Even then, on the hard compound our pace was strong.
“But then there was a safety car, so the field was back together. But on the restart we managed it all pretty well and brought it home.
“Incredibly proud of everyone. It’s been a very important week for us. The car has performed really well.
“Also, I think the execution of the whole race – when to pit and the pit stops themselves were all very good.”
Piastri rues poor start at F1 2025 Emilia Romagna GP
Piastri was surprisingly timid into Turn 1 despite not being under any serious pressure from George Russell’s Mercedes or Verstappen behind; braking very early, perhaps in a bid to make sure he didn’t run wide.
Yet that was all the Red Bull needed to try an attempt at snatching the lead from the 23-year-old, which is exactly what happened on Lap 1 at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari.
It’s no surprise that Piastri was disappointed with himself upon reflection, and declares he and McLaren have more to work on if they aim to stay ahead of their rivals on the F1 grid.
“I just braked too early,” Piastri said to F1 TV, of losing the lead. “It was a good move by Max as well.
“Disappointing obviously but we made a few wrong calls after that anyway. Not our best Sunday, so definitely a lot of things to look at and review.
“Well done to Max and Red Bull. It was a good move and they had pace today.”
