The 2024 Formula 1 season only wrapped up some 30 days ago, and we're already focusing on what's ahead of us.

Time flies fast, and with a new season waiting around the corner to start in March, it is no wonder that the teams have been preparing for it for a while now.

One could argue that the F1 teams are already prepared for the start of the season. As far as teams and drivers go, the cast has been assembled. The first race is scheduled for March 14-16 in Australia and will be closely followed by a China GP on March 21-23. From there, we will move toward Japan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Miami, Europe, Singapore, more Americas, and Qatar and wrap it up in Abu Dhabi.

The schedule is already known, the teams are gearing up to start, and almost all teams, barring two, have changed their line-ups. This makes it easy to bet on F1 on Stake.com this early in the year, as favorites are already well-known. But, before we get to them, we will list all the teams and their new/old line-ups. We will list things from worst to best to make things more interesting. Let's get going!

Alpine - Jack Doohan & Pierre Gasly

Looking back at the last few races of the 2024 calendar, Pierre Gasly showed some promise, and his form was on the upswing. Nonetheless, that will not be enough to make Alpine a competitor in 2025. Doohan will serve as his wingman and is looking to take over as Alpine's main driver. While Jack will be looking to do this, Alpine doesn't have too much trust in him as he's only signed for a couple of races early in the year. With plenty to prove, we can expect both drivers to give their best, but in the competition that F1 has this year, we wouldn't hold water to see these two fellows on the podium.

Sauber - Gabriel Bortoleto & Nico Hulkenberg

Not so long ago, Nico Hulkenberg switched from Haas to Audi, and everyone praised his decision then. When we look at the position both teams have at this moment, well, he could have done better. Haas has been moving up the table on the back of Nico's performances, while Sauber only took four points home for the year. Audi will not be in F1 until 2026, and by knowing this, no one should expect anything from Sauber this year. The Swiss outlet will be battling not to finish dead last, and not even the experienced German, Hulkenberg, could do anything about the speed of their vehicle. His teammate, Bartoleto, is entering the world's fastest caravan as an F2 champion. Still, he will quickly learn that F1 is a different beast altogether and that if he's not up to his best racing, he could end up just like Zhou Guanyu before him.

Racing Bulls - Isack Hadjar & Yuki Tsunoda

Yuki Tsunoda is not a priority in the world of Red Bull racing. Yet, he has proven himself over and over again with VCARB. This year, he will compete with Isack Hadjar, and like many times before, we can see him getting the best out of the two. Despite this, I do not think Hadjar will give up without a fight. Racing Bulls have two passionate drivers, and it will be hard to control their temperaments when racing in and out. If you're a sports betting fan, bet on Tsunoda, finishing at least one of the upcoming F1 races on the podium.

Haas - Olivier Bearman & Esteban Ocon

The 2025 Formula 1 season will be the year of the rookies. If we look at how well four of them performed in 2024, Bearman is the one who will attract the most attention in 2025. At the moment, Olivier looks like an experienced F1 driver, despite not having the hype surrounding him entering the competition that Antonelli, for example, has. A year with Haas will do wonders for his confidence as he will be removed from the spotlight. While the team was better off when it had Hulkenberg, Esteban Ocon is a good second driver for a team of Haas stature. Ayao Komatsu has plenty to look forward to this year, and his Haas team is entering the new year brimming with hope.

Aston Martin - Fernando Alonso & Lance Stroll

To be a good F1 team, you need at least one good driver. In most cases, one superb driver will do the trick. Aston Martin is not a powerhouse in the Formula 1 caravan, but their driving duo sets them apart from the F 1 bottom feeders. Fernando Alonso is far away from his glory days, but finishing in the P9 spot last year in a vehicle far from being competitive proved once again that the Spanish ace still has what it takes. The talent is still there, and nowadays, he has a fine partner, too. Lance Stroll is a divisive presence in the AM cockpit because he's the owner's son, but at the moment, he doesn't appear to be a lousy pairing for Alonso.

Mercedes - Kimi Antonelli & George Russell

Things are never dull with the Mercedes F1 racing team. This year will be an exciting one. F1 odds do not make Mercedes the favorite team the most competitive in 2025, but we have high expectations for them due to their super-talented driver pairing. The hype surrounding this Mercedes team is unbearable at times, and it is all thanks to no other than Kimi Antonelli. The youngster is dubbed as the next Max Verstappen, and at only 18 years of age, he is the one to look after during the 2025 F1 season. There are always risks for teams putting such young studs in the cockpit, but Mercedes sees it as a risk worth taking, considering Kimi's immense talent.

Toto Wolf has taken a page out of Red Bull's driving manual and is trying to replicate the move RB Racing pulled when they let Max Verstappen be the face of their franchise. As far as Red Bull is concerned, their gamble paid off. It remains to be seen if Mercedes will be lucky enough. Due to all the hype surrounding Antonelli, people almost forget about George Russell. Mercedes has a consistent driver in him, who probably belongs in the upper F1 echelon. As far as the 2025 season is concerned, we see him as a perfect balance for Kimi.

Williams - Carlos Sainz & Alex Albon

Williams is our darling for the year. Yes, they do not have the most potent car on the grid. They're far from it. What do they have? They have James Vowles, who managed to lure Carlos Sainz to his team. When this transfer was completed, Williams received a pretty good driver pairing. Their drivers are why we rank them this high for the year. At the moment, the only drivers that are objectively better than Sainz are Hamilton and Verstappen. It only makes Ferrari's decision to drop Sainz so much weirder. As a true professional, Carlos took his Ferrari departure personally, and in the meantime, he is clearly one of the top 5 drivers in F1. We got used to seeing Sainz in Ferrari red, but as far as Williams is concerned, they will not care too much after managing to sign one of the premium F1 drivers. Alex Albon is Sainz's delicate and competitive counterpart at the moment. In the past, he's been put to the test by Franco Colapinto, but Sainz is a different beast. For the Thai driver, this will be the biggest test of his career since his time competing with Max Verstappen.

Red Bull - Liam Lawson & Max Verstappen

Yes, we know, now we're entering controversial territory. It is only due to Max Verstappen that Red Bull is ranked this high as it is. The only reason they're this high is Max, and the only reason why they aren't higher is that we know very little about Liam Lawson. In the past, Red Bull always went with tested drivers and the products of their racing academy. Thus, Lawson is an unknown quantity for us and the RB Racing team. The best examples of their past policy are Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon, who had previous experience with Toro Rosso. As far as Lawson is concerned, he only has 11 races in Formula 1, which is not enough for the stature of the Red Bull team.

Furthermore, he will have the most challenging job in the caravan - keeping up with Max Verstappen. If he manages to do so, he will keep Red Bull in the rankings throughout the year. However, this is something that Max will be able to do on his own, as he has proved in the past to be able to do it. By looking at the rest of our list, Verstappen will have the biggest challenge of his career to help Red Bull win the constructors title. It can be done, but it will be a challenge worth following on the Kick.com platform that will be streaming all of the races of the F1 2025 season.

Ferrari - Lewis Hamilton & Charles Leclerc

Now we're entering the deep sea, where the big sharks swim. For a casual onlooker, Hamilton and Leclerc are the best F1 pairing at the moment—on paper, that is. His due has a massive question mark hanging over it, as we can't be sure which Lewis Hamilton will be driving a Ferrari before the season kicks off.

If we look at the entirety of Lewis' career, Ferrari has gotten a champion in the blood, and they can be more than glad he's on Team Ferrari. Yet, at the end of last year, there were more than a few warning signs. Some showed a driver with flaws whose best days were long gone. Of course, with Hamilton's history and experience, you can never write him off. 2025 could be the year of his return to top form. For one, he is changing scenery after a while, and for most drivers, that appears to be refreshing. Secondly, Ferrari is a team he idolized since a young age, which will be an additional motive to give his best. In any case, we could get the best year of his career or a man swallowed by the machine Ferrari puts out on the racetrack.

Beyond Hamilton, Ferrari has another superstar in the making, Charles Leclerc. We witnessed a driver on a mission in 2024, and Charles was a consistent force last year, and we expect more of the same in 2025. Leclerc is a man whose skillset is reaching its peak. It is up to Ferrari to give their drivers the best possible machine, and if they do that, it's going to be Leclerc and not Hamilton who will dethrone Max Verstappen.

McLaren - Oscar Piastri & Lando Norris

Oscar Piastri & Lando Norris were teammates last year, too. This is what makes them the most potent duo. McLaren is one of only two teams that haven't changed their line-ups compared to 2024. The consistency, familiarity, and sheer driving quality make Lando and Oscar a good pairing for the upcoming F1 season. What can make McLaren fans happy is that they not only have two good drivers, but they also have two good, young, and still improving pilots. Talent is there, and we can witness the McLaren dynasty unfolding with some improvement. For Norris, 2024 was when he found his place and groove in the F1 caravan. Piastri, at the same time, drives like a seasoned professional despite being so young. If both of them continue where they left off in 2024, we can bet that the constructors' title will return to Woking.

With everything said above, we're concluding our list of driver duos for the upcoming F1 season. The next twelve months will show whether we were right or wrong, but at this moment, we firmly believe that this list is based on merit and that these F1 power rankings will stand the test of time.