Author Archives: PressBox

Formula One closed 2025 with annual revenue up 14% to $3.87 billion, operating income rising 28% to $632 million and adjusted OIBDA increasing 20% to $946 million. Reports varied slightly on headline figures — one summary rounded F1 revenue to $3.9 billion — but the company also posted a record fourth-quarter revenue of $1.38 billion, a 22% jump from Q4 2024.

The gains were broad-based: primary F1 revenue totaled $3.09 billion, with the revenue mix split among race promotion (26.7%), media rights (31.3%) and sponsorship (21.7%) — sponsorship exceeded 20% of primary revenue for the first time since Liberty Media’s acquisition. Ancillary streams supported growth as well, with hospitality and licensing up 20% to $787 million. Fan engagement rose, with attendance of 6.75 million (up 4%) and live TV viewership reported broadly as up about 21% year‑over‑year (one source cited a 24% increase). Liberty attributed media‑rights growth to F1 TV subscriptions and one‑time movie revenue.

Parent Liberty Media also reported improved results and strategic moves tied to the strong performance: consolidated revenue was $4.48 billion for fiscal 2025 and overall operating income rose to $577 million from $287 million a year earlier. In July, Liberty completed an acquisition of an 84% stake in MotoGP for $3.1 billion and disclosed pro-forma 2025 MotoGP revenue of $573 million (up 14%), pro-forma operating income of $54 million (up 86%) and adjusted OIBDA of $201 million. Liberty highlighted longer-term commercial stability — including a Concorde Agreement through 2030, new sponsorship deals such as Standard Chartered and media-rights extensions — alongside venue and rights arrangements that support F1’s revenue outlook.

Lewis Hamilton has entered this season at Ferrari determined to revive his form after a disappointing 2025. That year he finished sixth in the drivers’ standings, did not record a single grand prix podium and was frequently eliminated in Q1. His intra-team duel with Charles Leclerc remains the clearest measure of recovery: Leclerc outqualified Hamilton 23 times to seven, took seven podiums and finished 86 points ahead in 2025. Some critics have been blunt — Roberto Boccafogli called Hamilton ‘clearly outclassed’ — and Ralf Schumacher warned Hamilton could ‘pull the plug’ on his F1 career if he cannot match Leclerc in the opening three or four races. Hamilton has publicly ruled out retirement and his Ferrari contract runs until the end of 2027; figures such as Bernie Ecclestone have reportedly urged him privately to retire.

Ferrari and Hamilton are relying on this season’s regulation overhaul and encouraging pre-season testing to deliver improvement. Ferrari topped running in Barcelona and Bahrain, with Leclerc posting the fastest test time and the SF-26’s revised rear-wing package praised for its straight-line speed. F1 presenter Will Buxton highlighted Hamilton’s strong showings in testing and predicted he can return to winning ways. Ferrari CEO Stefano Domenicali said Hamilton felt confident ahead of the rule changes.

Behind the scenes, Ferrari has reshuffled engineering support — Riccardo Adami moved into a different role and Hamilton has a new race engineer — as the team seeks clearer communication and technical gains. Observers warn that if meaningful improvement does not arrive with the new regulations, Ferrari’s high-profile signing could be seen as a gamble that backfired, adding pressure on team principal Fred Vasseur and potentially jeopardizing Leclerc’s long-term commitment.

Isack Hadjar, 21, has been promoted into a full-time race seat at Red Bull Racing and will partner four-time world champion Max Verstappen for the 2026 F1 season. The move was announced ahead of the Abu Dhabi finale and was reported again as the paddock headed to the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. The appointment makes Verstappen’s fourth different teammate in 16 months.

Hadjar earned the promotion after a strong rookie campaign that included a podium at the 2025 Dutch Grand Prix and an impressive qualifying and race record; he outscored Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda across 2025. His first season also featured notable errors — a formation-lap crash in Australia, a collision with Kimi Antonelli in Britain and costly mistakes in Baku. Hadjar joined Red Bull’s junior programme in 2021, carried out FP1 outings in 2023 and 2024 and provided simulator support; Red Bull credited Lawson as a “senior figure” who helped mentor Hadjar, and team boss Laurent Mekies and prior FP1 sessions were said to have smoothed his transition into the senior Milton Keynes operation.

Team and paddock voices framed the timing as opportune. Sergio Perez called the promotion a “massive opportunity,” while Alex Albon and others suggested the 2026 regulation changes will act as a reset likely to suit a young driver stepping into Red Bull’s high-performance environment. Verstappen described their early working relationship after Bahrain testing as “very open,” said Hadjar should enter 2026 with confidence, and — speaking of his own mindset — added, “I can beat anyone.” Hadjar did suffer a wet-weather crash during a closed-door Red Bull test in January 2026. The move comes as Red Bull prepares to start 2026 with a new Red Bull–Ford engine, a technical change that has prompted questions about the team’s title prospects and underscored the significance of integrating a young teammate.