Hungary for more, or ready for the cheque?

Formula One Lenovo Hungarian Grand Prix 2025

This weekend we visited Budapest and the Hungaroring.

In an effort to get a Formula One race behind the Iron Curtain, Bernie Ecclestone initially wanted to construct a track in the USSR, but ultimately settled on Budapest. This circuit has been on the Formula One calendar since its construction in 1986.

In the 90's this was the stage for the legendary battles of Piquet, Senna, and Mansell. In 2001 Michael Schumacher's win here would equal Alain Prost's record for most Grand Prix victories. The Hungaroring is also a popular destination for maiden wins. In 1993 Damon Hill would see the top step for the first time, Fernando Alonso's first victory came in 2003, Jenson Button in 2006, Heikki Kovalainen in 2008 and in 2021 Esteban Ocon got his first and, so far, only win. Last year we all awkwardly witnessed Oscar Piastri's unorthodox first Grand Prix Victory.

This time around we did not see a first time winner but delivered a 5th race win this year for Lando Norris.

The 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix delivered a mixed bag of moments on track and strategy duels. Was it exciting? Ya, kinda.

This race encapsulates what this era of Formula One racing is all about. Track position is king! In a time when on track overtakes are more difficult than ever, the strategy calls are so much more important. If you can find a way to get your car at the front of the pack, your nearly free to tire manage your way to a victory. We have now seen two races in a row where the 'stay out' call has led to a win. Lando fell back two positions from the start, and on a track that doesn't have many opportunities to pass, was eventually stuck in his position behind George Russell. The race forecast was for two pit stops, Norris opted for the "what if we just don't?" option. He took his Hard tires all the way to the checkered flag in a one stop strategy that most said wouldn't work. Oscar Piastri started ahead of Norris, but elected the two-stop strategy, which would gave him fresher tires in the final stages of the race. As legendary F1 commentator Murray Walker used to say "catching is one thing, passing is another." Oscar mounted a late charge, closing a 10-second gap, to track down Lando. Despite the tire advantage there was no overtake to be had and the order would be settled opposite of the last race in SPA.

George Russell again securing a back door podium after overtaking a struggling Charles Leclerc for the final step on the podium

With where how far we are into the season and the approaching end of this current car design, some interesting thing are happing with the grid. With some teams electing to end development and others continuing, some of the more notable take aways from Hungary highlight the gains and challenges they are experiencing.

Ferrari are in a rough place right now. I suspect this last batch of "upgrades" will be the final bit of development the team is perusing for this car. Leclerc, while managing to steal a way a pole position start, was on the back foot almost immediately. The suspicion is that they are having to run significantly higher tire pressures to increase the ride height. This increase reduces plank wear and avoids a repeat of the Chinese G.P. disqualification. Those pressure increases reduce the traction and compromise the aerodynamics. This combined with the high speed "lift and coast" Leclerc was asked to do maybe points to Ferrari trying to Band-Aid a fix to get this car to the end. It might be understating it slightly to mention Lewis Hamilton is also having issues with his Ferrari.

In contrast, Aston Martin are still advancing this years car. A surprisingly successful qualifying session saw Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll start 5th and 6th and finish 5th and 7th. This starting position allowed Fernando to pull an "Albon at Monaco," and hold up the field to maintain his starting place.

Alonso's FOURTEEN car DRS train.

The other Team in Green, Kick Sauber, seem to be finding their stride in the final year before its turn over into the Audi Project. Gabriel Bortoleto saw his highest career finish so far. Is there a divide forming between the teams still putting resources into this years car and those who have elected to develop next year's car?

The Williams duo showed flashes of success at points but now into the meat of the season are struggling to make it out of the back part of the grid. They have been the most outspoken about refusing to develop this car and while they are currently 5th in the constructors standings the gap to the teams behind is shrinking.

To once again paraphrase Murray Walker "With half the [season] gone, there is still half the [season] still to go." We leave this week to head into the summer break. With no on track action to watch we will have to look off track for our entertainment. Will the silly season truly start here? Now that the fate of Max and Freddie Vasseur are set for next year some of others are free play. I would expect to see the Mercedes announcement of George and Kimi's contract extension. Maybe something official might finally come out of Cadillac, or perhaps an announcement of Christian Horner's new consortium with Otmar Szafnauer to purchase Alpine. That would be neat.

I originally had preloaded a few remarks on how awful the Hungaroring is. It is my least favorite track on the F1 calendar. However it delivered a race that was actually entertaining. So I will just leave my rant here at the end.

Despite its "history", the race is still constantly underwhelming on track. It has been dubbed "Monoco without walls" due to limited overtaking zones, and thus often predictable races. It takes what should be a thrilling entry into this ongoing title battle to a monotonous procession. We can sometimes forgive Monaco for the lackluster racing, because in exchange it delivers the glamor of the Riviera, and the thrill of Formula One cars on the narrow streets. However the HungaroBORING amounts to a go kart track just outside of the suburbs. It is a dated Bernie Ecclestone design that struggles to have an identity other than the race before the break.