10 things that have happened in F1 since the last Safety Car

Formula 1 last deployed the Safety Car at the Canadian Grand Prix, round nine of the championship, where Bernd Mayländer was twice called into action.

But what’s happened in the 17 and a bit weeks since he last led a Grand Prix thanks to Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon’s crash? Answer: A lot!

1. Max Verstappen claimed his most recent F1 race win

One race after Canada, Max Verstappen stood on the top step of the podium having won the Spanish Grand Prix ahead of Lando Norris.

Although Norris lined up on pole position having pipped Verstappen in qualifying by 0.020s, it was the Dutchman who prevailed in a tense strategic battle to take the chequered flag 2.219s ahead of the McLaren driver.

The victory was Verstappen’s seventh in 10 races and saw him extend his lead in the Drivers’ Championship to 69 points. Little did anyone know at the time that it would be his last win to date as the Red Bull driver currently sits on an eight-race winless streak.

2. Lewis Hamilton broke his 945-day winless streak

Three races after Mayländer’s last lap, Lewis Hamilton broke his 945-day winless streak when he took the chequered flag at the British Grand Prix in front of his home fans at Silverstone.

Lining up second on the grid in a Mercedes 1-2, Mercedes lost the lead early in the race to the charging McLarens but when the weather changed, well-timed pit stops for intermediates and then again for slicks meant Hamilton was leading after the second round of stops.

Chased down by Verstappen at the very end of the 52-lap Grand Prix, the Briton held on to take the win by 1.465s.

It was Hamilton’s first win since the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP and his first in the ground-effect aerodynamic era. It was also his record NINTH British GP victory.

3. Oscar Piastri won his first F1 races

With McLaren’s spot-on upgrades and Oscar Piastri’s talent, it was always more of a ‘when’ than an ‘if’ the Australian would win his first Grand Prix. He did that in Hungary, four races after the Safety Car’s last appearance.

Although he lined up second on the grid behind Norris, Piastri made a flying start to lead the race and built up a lead over his team-mate. However, McLaren’s call to pit Norris first meant he undercut Piastri and the team spent the next 20 laps convincing Norris to let his team-mate back through.

He eventually did, Piastri winning the Grand Prix by 2.141s ahead of his team-mate. Not the best way to win given all the focus was on Norris and the team orders but Piastri got to do it again in Baku – and without any intra-team drama.

4. Carlos Sainz signed for Williams

Five races and one day after he crashed into Albon and brought out the Safety Car, Sainz was confirmed as the Thai-British racer’s F1 2025 team-mate.

Dropped by Ferrari even before the first race of the season, Sainz spent months exploring his options with the Spaniard linked to Mercedes, Red Bull, Audi and Alpine. In the end, it was Williams who secured his signature with Sainz committing to a multi-year deal.

“I am fully confident that Williams is the right place for me to continue my F1 journey and I am extremely proud of joining such a historic and successful team, where many of my childhood heroes drove in the past and made their mark on our sport,” he said at the time.

“The ultimate goal of bringing Williams back to where it belongs, at the front of the grid, is a challenge that I embrace with excitement and positivity.

“I am convinced that this team has all the right ingredients to make history again and, starting on January 1, I will give my absolute best to drive Williams forward alongside every single member of the team.”

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5. Logan Sargeant out, Franco Colapinto in

The Dutch Grand Prix, F1’s sixth successive race without a Safety Car, marked Logan Sargeant’s final Formula 1 grid with a big crash in qualifying at the Zandvoort circuit the final straw for Williams.

While it was reported on the Sunday that was probably the last hurrah in Sargeant’s F1 journey, Williams only confirmed that two days later while also announcing Franco Colapinto would replace the American for the rest of the season.

The Williams’ junior made his debut at the Italian Grand Prix and finished a very credible P12 before doing what Sargeant could not do by bringing the FW46 home in the points with a P8 in Baku.

6. Kimi Antonelli was signed by Mercedes for F1 2025

The Italian GP, the seventh race sans the Aston Martin Vantage, not only marked Colapinto’s debut but it was also the weekend when Mercedes finally, after months of rumours, completed their 2025 driver line-up.

Having mulled over the identity of Hamilton’s replacement, and chased Max Verstappen in the process, Toto Wolff announced Mercedes junior Kimi Antonelli would be George Russell’s new team-mate.

The team made the announcement 24 hours after Antonelli made his F1 debut in FP1, climbing into the W15 for one of Mercedes’ two mandatory young driver sessions. He went purple on his very first hot lap. He crashed on his second.

Wolff not only shrugged off his crash but conceded it would happen again in 2025. “He’s a rookie,” said the team boss, “he’s very young, we are prepared to invest in his future and these moments will happen. They will continue to happen next year, but there will also be a lot of highlights.”

7. Oliver Bearman made history in Formula 1

Azerbaijan, despite witnessing a few crashes earlier in the weekend, miraculously became race No.8 without a Safety Car. It was the first time since the inaugural race in 2017 that Mayländer wasn’t called on to do a lap or three.

But while that was a moment for the history books, so too was Oliver Bearman’s performance in the Haas.

Having made his F1 debut at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix when he replaced Sainz, who was recovering from an appendectomy, and scoring points for Ferrari, P7 on the day, Bearman followed that up with another top-10 finish on his Haas debut. Filling in for Kevin Magnussen who was serving his one-race ban, Bearman crossed the line in 10th place.

In doing so he became the first driver in F1 history to score points for two separate teams in his first two Grands Prix.

8. McLaren took control of the Constructors’

While race No.8 without the green machine saw the teams line up on the Baku grid with Red Bull six points to the good in the Constructors’ Championship, it ended with McLaren 20 points up.

Oscar Piastri scored 25 with his second Grand Prix victory, the Australian giving Charles Leclerc a lesson in defending as he kept him at bay despite the Ferrari driver making several attempts to regain the lead.

Lando Norris brought in 13 points as he raced his way from 15th on the grid to fourth at the chequered flag, overtook Max Verstappen in the process, and he scored the fastest lap point.

With Verstappen only fifth and Sergio Perez crashing out on the penultimate lap – only the VSC used for that, McLaren grabbed the lead in the teams’ standings for the first time since 2014. Red Bull lost it for the first time since May 2022.

9. Daniel Ricciardo lost his VCARB seat

Race nine without the Safety Car made history for said Safety Car as it was the first time that it didn’t lead a lap at the Singapore GP. It was also Daniel Ricciardo’s final F1 race.

The VCARB driver arrived at the Marina Bay circuit to a slew of rumours that it would be his final event, but neither the driver nor VCARB confirmed it.

There were signs though, from Ricciardo’s downbeat countenance after qualifying to his fastest lap and then the guard of honour. He was also the very last driver to leave the paddock some four hours after the chequered flag.

VCARB announced four days later that he had run his final race with the team and would be replaced from the United States GP onwards.

“I’ve loved this sport my whole life. It’s wild and wonderful and been a journey,” Ricciardo wrote on social media. “To the teams and individuals that have played their part, thank you. To the fans who love the sport sometimes more than me haha thank you.

“It’ll always have its highs and lows but it’s been fun and truth be told I wouldn’t change it. Until the next adventure.”

10. Renault abandoned their F1 2026 engine project

Still reeling from the Singapore news (Daniel Ricciardo’s exit that is, not the disappearance of the Safety Car) another bombshell was dropped when Renault confirmed they would abandon their 2026 F1 engine project.

Weeks after the rumour first did the rounds, the French manufacturer confirmed that the engine facility at Viry-Chatillon had stopped work on the all-new 2026 engine and would instead develop other technologies for the automotive group.

“Formula 1 activities at Viry, excluding the development of a new engine, will continue until the end of the 2025 season,” the statement added.

It marks a huge turning point for the Formula 1 team as Alpine will lose its works team status and become a customer entry. Mercedes are reportedly leading the running to power the 2026 car.

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