Four F1 drivers who have badly struggled in 2025 so far

The 2025 Formula 1 has left a few drivers with nowhere to hide. With all 10 teams producing cars capable of scoring points, at least through fortune if not on pure pace, underperforming drivers have been thrust into the spotlight.

While some had to justify their places on the grid even before the season started, others have found it difficult to meet the high burden of expectations placed on them.

Here are four drivers who struggled the most in the opening five flyaway races of 2025.

Liam Lawson

Best qualifying result: 12th
Best race result: 12th
Points: 0

Liam Lawson’s struggles at Red Bull have been well-documented. His dismal performance in China, which saw him qualify last on the grid, forced Red Bull to demote him to its secondary team with immediate effect.

While there is no denying that Lawson deserved more seat time to acclimatise himself to the RB21, Yuki Tsunoda’s quick adaptation to life at Red Bull since the Japanese GP has vindicated the team’s brutal decision.

More worryingly, Lawson hasn’t had the best of time since returning to Racing Bulls, with his teammate Isack Hadjar having the edge over him throughout the Japan-Bahrain-Saudi Arabia triple header.

There have been some signs of progress, with Jeddah arguably being his most competitive weekend of the year, but the Kiwi needs to up his game and start scoring points on at least a semi-regular basis.

Fernando Alonso

Best qualifying result: 12th
Best race result: 11th
Points: 0

This has been the worst start to a season for Fernando Alonso since he drove the Honda-powered McLaren MCL32 in 2017.

While the AMR25 is one of the slowest cars on the grid, Lance Stroll’s brilliant under-the-radar drives in Australia and China have reflected negatively on Alonso.

Alonso squandered his best opportunity of the year with a crash in a rain-hit Australian GP, while a brake failure forced another retirement in China.

His performances have since improved and he finished on the cusp of points in Japan and Saudi Arabia, but his admission that he may not score a top-10 finish this year has already raised alarm bells at Aston Martin.

Jack Doohan

Best qualifying result: 11th
Best race result: 13th
Points: 0

It is widely believed that Alpine bosses weren’t fully convinced of Jack Doohan’s seat when they signed him to replace Esteban Ocon in 2025. The team’s decision to hire Franco Colapinto as a reserve has only led credence to that theory.

While talk of Doohan having only 5-6 races to prove himself has been dismissed, question marks remain over his long-term future with the team.

Like Alonso, Doohan has had to deal with a slow car, but his own shortcomings have also been exposed this year. The Australian picked up four penalty points in the Chinese Grand Prix, while his failure to close the DRS during practice at Suzuka wrecked his entire weekend.

An 11th-place in qualifying for the Bahrain GP was a major boost for his career, but that effort pales in comparison with teammate Pierre Gasly’s second-row start in the same race.

Lewis Hamilton

Best qualifying result: Fifth
Best race result: Fifth 
Points: 31

Lewis Hamilton’s blockbuster move to Ferrari may have brought a huge PR boost to the Prancing Horse and F1 as a whole, but their partnership has so far failed to deliver on track.

While it would be wrong to forget his victory in the Chinese GP sprint, that race already seems like a distant memory after this month’s triple header.

Hamilton performed reasonably well in Bahrain, but even the seven-time world champion was left to accept his fate after struggling to seventh last weekend in Jeddah, more than 30 seconds behind teammate Charles Leclerc, who finished on the podium.

The dejected tone that Hamilton struck was reminiscent of his final year at Mercedes in 2024 when he was struggling to match his teammate George Russell on a consistent basis.

The lighter and more agile 2026-spec cars will rely less on ground effects than the current machines, so at least there is some hope that the Briton will be able to turn around his fortunes in F1 next year.